Purchase of a Small Animal 7T MRI Instrument The instrument will be used for anatomical imaging, functional imaging, and molecular imaging studies of small animal models including (but not limited to) mice, rats, and marmosets. These imaging results will support research that investigates a variety of biological conditions and pathological diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, neurological conditions, musculoskeletal diseases, metabolic diseases, and infectious diseases. The instrument will also be used for theragnostic research that combines diagnoses and therapy for cancer and other pathologies. Positron Emission Tomography (PET) detection system that is compatible with the MRI instrument, for performing simultaneous PET/MRI studies with small animal models. This PET system includes the PET detector that is inserted and automatically integrated into the magnet, electronics components connected to the PET detector that reside outside the magnet, as well as a separate workstation if the PET system requires a workstation that is separate from the MRI workstation. The PET detector crystals must be pixelated LSO crystals that are 1.0-1.2 mm on one side, 1.0-1.2 mm on a second side, and at least 10 mm on a third side. The PET system must have triple coincidence detection, have positron range correction, and must not require water cooling. Performance specifications for the PET system include 0.7 mm isotropic spatial resolution, 4.5 cm transaxial field of view, and a Noise Equivalent Count (NEC) rate of 14 kcps/MBq or higher. The PET images and MR images should show no degradation in sensitivity and image artifacts when performing simultaneous PET/MRI.
