MRI reveals structure and function of the living brain at unprecedented detail. But the application of MRI by neuroscientists to animal models of human disease is Impeded by significant technological challenges requiring resource and expertise centralization. Core 1 will support high resolution, state-of-the-art MRI technologies and their integration to advance NIH-supported basic and clinical neuroscience research. In the past cycle, we achieved this aim through the collaborative implementation of a wide range of MRI sequences such as calibrated fMRI, arterial spin labeling MRI, diffusion tensor MRI, custom-optimized RF probes and holders including phased-array RF technology, a wide range of static magnetic field shimming approaches, and installation and calibration of two new scanner consoles. We also supported new research initiatives by investigators and developed novel approaches for structural, functional, and molecular imaging. The qualifying user group of Core 1 consists of 11 Pis funded by NINDS who along with 18 other NIH-funded Pis use multimodal MRI to address fundamental questions in basic and clinical neuroscience. The impact of Core 1 is shown by its support of work in 30 NIH grants and 7 new research initiatives which led to grants, training of 7 neuroscientists in NINDS laboratories, and contributions to 60 papers that led to 602 citations (for Core 1 alone this represents 51% of the total citations for 106 papers for all Cores). For the next cycle, we will continue to implement, maintain, and support innovative multi-modal MRI methods for Core 1 users, support new research initiatives, train and provide mentorship for neuroscience Pis and their personnel for Core 1 usage, integrate synergistic use of MR/neurophysiological measurements and project-specific data analysis, implement new Core 1 methods to support neuroscience Pis, and track Core 1 activities and disseminate/share resources to NIH community. The newly implemented applications will include multi-modal MRI on the wide-bore 7.0T system and multi-coil shimming for state-of-the-art structural and functional imaging on all systems. The overall goal of Core 1 is to enhance NINDS- and NIH-funded research.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) reveals structure and function of the living brain at unprecedented detail. But their application by neuroscientists to animal models of human disease is impeded by significant technological challenges requiring resource and expertise centralization. Core 1 will support and implement high-resolution MRI technologies and their integration to advance NIH-supported projects of direct relevance to public health, and consistent with the NINDS mission for treatment of neurological disorders.