MRI scanner to propel cutting-edge research across campus

Workers move the MRI scanner into place through a cutout in the wall of MVR Hall.

A powerful magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner has just been delivered to the East Wing of Martha Van Rensselaer Hall. By the fall, researchers will be able to obtain detailed images with rich tissue contrasts noninvasively and without using ionizing radiation.

The 3 Tesla GE750 MRI scanner is well suited for a broad range of scientific studies for structural and functional investigations involving humans, small animals, plants and biomedical materials.

The scanner will help foster cross-disciplinary collaboration and innovative technology development among faculty from diverse fields such as biomedical engineering, neuroscience, behavioral science, and plant and animal science. It will also enhance Cornell’s resources for analyzing and visualizing research data, leading to new areas of investigation and expanding educational opportunities for the next generation of scientists.

"The MRI scanner fills the void of in vivo imaging capability on Ithaca campus and enhances Cornell’s competitiveness in research," said Yi Wang, professor of biomedical engineering in the College of Engineering and Faculty Distinguished Professor of Radiology at Weill Cornell Medical College. Wang is the principal investigator for the National Institutes of Health MRI equipment grant and co-directs the new Cornell MRI Facility with Valerie Reyna, professor of human development in the College of Human Ecology.

"We expect this MRI research scanner will enable and stimulate various fundamental studies at the Ithaca campus, with potential for results to be translated into clinical practice at Weill Cornell and into healthier life commercialization opportunities in the CornellNYC Tech campus," Wang added.