One Senior Chair (for director of the Medical and Biological Functional Imaging Centre)
Interdisciplinary Centre (Impact and Focus): The Medical and Biological Functional Imaging Centre has been established at UBC and the Vancouver teaching hospitals with leading edge technology for in vivo magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy. It consists of a high field ( 3 or 4 Tesla) wide bore magnetic resonance scanner for research on human subjects, a very high field (9.4 Tesla) medium bore magnetic resonance scanner for research on animals ranging in size from transgenic mice to primates, and an image analysis laboratory. The Imaging Centre will be located on the UBC campus at the Koerner Pavilion of UBC Hospital. The imaging centre aims to extend non-invasive imaging of biological structure and function in humans and animals to the current technical limits and to apply this technique to clinical and fundamental research.
Perceived need: The Medical and Biological Functional Imaging Centre recently obtained sufficient funding (~11.5 M $) from CFI, BCKDF and the Blusson Endowment for purchase and installation of the two scanners and the imaging analysis instruments. The CFI award for the Centre was contingent upon UBC’s commitment to hiring of a director who is a recognized, senior individual, appointed t the Full Professor level. The Director should have an international reputation in research with functional magnetic resonance and spectroscopy at high magnetic field strengths. We propose that the director should have a joint position between the Faculties of Science and Medicine (With Zoology and/ or Physics and Radiology as departmental affiliations). We propose the inclusion of a junior chair to establish the centre with necessary critical mass for core competence and for future innovation. A Seminar series, “Frontiers of Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Spectroscopy” has been initiated at UBC to bring internationally recognized experts in in vitro magnetic resonance to UBC for consultation. So far, five senior researchers have arranged to come to UBC in January and February 2000. These are potential candidates for the Director position.
Participants and Benefactors of the Functional Imaging Centre Include: The principal users represent widely disparate disciplines from across UBC and the Lower Mainland Community (from radiology, paediatrics, physics, computer science, surgery, biomechanics, zoology, psychology and neuroscience). Examples of some research programmes funded and ready to proceed on the human scanner include: Mechanisms of schizophrenia (Peter Liddle, and colleagues, Psychiatry), Neurodevelopment and paediatric central nervous system disorders (Brain Mapping Group, BC Children’s Hospital); Mechanisms of multiple sclerosis (Don Paty and colleagues, Neurology, Radiology; Studies of speech perception and word learning (Janet Werker, Psychology); Organization of the Cerebral cortex (Max Cynader and colleagues, Brain Research Centre), Degenerative changes after neurotrauma (John Steeves, CORD). Research programs planned for the small bore scanner include: Models ofr defense afainse hypoxia (Peter Hochachka, Zoology); Studies of the visual cortex (Max Cynader and colleagues) Studies of CNS Myelin after local administration of immunological agents designed to reduce myelin in order to promote neural regeneration in animals (John Steeves and colleagues, CORD) and studies of transgenic mice (Anthony Phillips and colleagues, Psychology).
Available Infrastructure Support: Through the leadership of the Dean of Science, all of the above academic units (e.g. CORD and the Brain Research Centre) are ready and will to provide (or have already committed to providing) the necessary space, start-up funding, recruitment costs and ongoing infrastructure support that are necessary to create and maintain a world-class Medical and Biological Imaging Centre at UBC.