Imaging Instruments
MRIs reveal signs of brain injuries not seen in CT scans
December 19, 2012 11:07 am | by Jason Bardi, UCSF | News | Comments
According to a clinical trial led by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco and the San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, hospital magnetic resonance imaging (MRIs) may be better at predicting long-term outcomes for people with mild traumatic brain injuries than computed tomography scans, which have been the standard technique for evaluating such injuries in the emergency room.
Grammar errors? The brain detects them even when you are unaware
May 14, 2013 10:40 am | News | Comments
Your brain often works on autopilot when it comes to grammar. That theory has been...
Study looks at muscle adaptations in minimalist runners
May 7, 2013 11:22 am | by Fariss Samarrai, University of Virginia | News | Comments
Despite the perceived advantages of foot protection, some runners in recent years have returned...
New imaging technique visualizes bio-metals and molecules simultaneously
May 2, 2013 2:25 pm | by Juliette Savin, RIKEN | News | Comments
Metal elements and molecules interact in the body, but visualizing them together has...
Computational tool simplifies complex data into 2D images
May 20, 2013 9:30 am | News | CommentsResearchers at Columbia University and Stanford University have developed a computational method that enables scientists to visualize and interpret "high-dimensional" data produced by single-cell measurement technologies such as mass cytometry. A sophisticated algorithm converts difficult-to-interpret data into visual representations similar to two-dimensional "scatter plots".
New imaging technique to visualize biometals and molecules
May 2, 2013 10:29 am | News | CommentsMetal elements and molecules interact in the body but visualizing them together has always been a challenge. Researchers from the RIKEN Center for Life Science Technologies have developed a new molecular imaging technology that enables them to visualize biometals and biomolecules simultaneously in a live mouse. This new technology will enable researchers to study the complex interactions between metal elements and molecules.
Important microscopic technique advanced for biomedical research
April 29, 2013 8:17 am | News | CommentsScientists at TU Delft have made an important advancement in a new microscopic technique that is widely used in medical research. They demonstrate what the resolution of this localization microscopy is and how the best resolution can be achieved as quickly as possible.
Imaging technology could reveal cellular secrets
April 25, 2013 2:30 pm | News | CommentsResearchers have married two biological imaging technologies, creating a new way to learn how good cells go bad. Being able to study a cell's internal workings in fine detail would likely yield insights into the physical and biochemical responses to its environment. The technology, which combines an atomic force microscope and nuclear magnetic resonance system, could help researchers study individual cancer cells.
Researchers find out why some stress is good for you
April 17, 2013 7:19 am | by Robert Sanders, UC Berkeley | News | CommentsMuch research has demonstrated that chronic stress elevates levels of glucocorticoid stress hormones, which impairs memory. And stress is associated with a lot of other physical ailments. But less is known about the effects of acute stress, and studies have been conflicting. Recent work shows that intense, short-lived stress causes the proliferation of new neurons, improving mental performance.
Scientists learn what makes nerve cells so strong
April 16, 2013 11:05 am | News | CommentsHow do nerve cells—which can each be up to three feet long in humans—keep from rupturing or falling apart? Recent research reports that axons, the long, cable-like projections on neurons, are made stronger by a unique modification of the common molecular building block of the cell skeleton. The finding may help guide the search for treatments for neurodegenerative diseases.
X-ray approach devised to track surgical devices
April 16, 2013 8:20 am | News | CommentsResearchers from North Carolina State University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have developed a new tool to help surgeons use X-rays to track devices used in “minimally invasive” surgical procedures while also limiting the patient’s exposure to radiation from the X-rays.
Tiny, injectable LEDs help neuroscientists study the brain
April 11, 2013 5:28 pm | News | CommentsA new class of tiny, injectable light-emitting diodes (LEDs) is illuminating the deep mysteries of the brain. Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Washington University in St. Louis developed ultrathin, flexible optoelectronic devices—including LEDs the size of individual neurons—that are lighting the way for neuroscientists in the field of optogenetics and beyond.
Doctors use brain scans to “see” and measure pain
April 11, 2013 3:24 am | by Marilynn Marchione, AP Chief Medical Writer | News | CommentsIn a provocative new study, scientists reported Wednesday that they were able to "see" pain on brain scans and, for the first time, measure its intensity and tell whether a drug was relieving it. Though the research is in its early stages, it opens the door to a host of possibilities. For example, scans might be used someday to tell when pain is hurting a baby, someone with dementia, or a paralyzed person unable to talk.
ORNL's awake imaging device moves diagnostics field forward
April 4, 2013 12:13 pm | News | CommentsA technology being developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory promises to provide clear images of the brains of children, the elderly, and people with Parkinson's and other diseases without the use of uncomfortable or intrusive restraints. Awake imaging provides motion compensation reconstruction, which removes blur caused by motion, allowing physicians to get a transparent picture of the functioning brain without anesthetics that can mask conditions and alter test results.
Telerobotic system designed to treat bladder cancer
April 3, 2013 9:18 am | by David Salisbury, Vanderbilt University | News | CommentsAlthough bladder cancer is the sixth most common form of cancer in the U.S. and the most expensive to treat, the basic method that doctors use to treat it hasn’t changed much in more than 70 years. A research team may soon be changing that dramatically after having developed a prototype telerobotic platform designed to be inserted through natural orifices—in this case the urethra—that can provide surgeons with a much better view, making it easier to remove tumors.
Switch to a power stroke enables tiny marine crustacean to survive
April 2, 2013 12:59 pm | News | CommentsOlympic swimmers aren’t the only ones who change their strokes to escape competitors. To escape from the jaws and claws of predators in cold, viscous water, marine copepods switch from a wave-like swimming stroke to big power strokes, a behavior that has now been revealed thanks to 3D high-speed digital holography.
Nanotechnology research study turns brain tumors blue
March 27, 2013 11:46 am | News | CommentsResearchers from Georgia Tech and Children's Healthcare of Atlanta have developed a technique that assists in identifying tumors from normal brain tissue during surgery by staining tumor cells blue. The technique could be critically important for hospitals lacking sophisticated equipment in preserving the maximum amount of normal tissue and brain function during surgery.
New method may sharpen microscopic images
March 22, 2013 11:32 am | News | CommentsUniversity of Texas, Dallas researchers are developing a new low-light imaging method that could improve a number of scientific applications, including the microscopic imaging of single molecules in cancer research. The team's method minimizes the deterioration of images that can occur with conventional imaging approaches.
RTI International’s 3D heart catheter receives innovation award
March 11, 2013 10:46 am | News | CommentsAn RTI International-developed prototype catheter that can generate live, streaming 3D ultrasound images from inside the heart has recently received a Cardiovascular Innovation Award at the 2013 Cardiovascular Research Technologies Annual Symposium. Called a live volumetric imaging intracardiac catheter, the technology has the potential to improve catheter-based heart procedures.
Team develops trackable drug-filled nanoparticles
March 1, 2013 8:35 am | News | CommentsMany researchers have been investigating the potential of tiny particles filled with drugs to treat cancer. A team of scientists in Sweden have recently made an advance in this area of research by developing “theranostic” nanoparticles, which combine therapy and diagnostics in the same nanomaterial. They are trackable through magnetic resonance.
Reading the human genome
February 27, 2013 3:16 pm | News | CommentsResearchers with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have achieved a major advance in understanding how genetic information is transcribed from DNA to RNA by providing the first step-by-step look at the biomolecular machinery that reads the human genome.
An atlas of the human heart is drawn using statistics
February 26, 2013 10:17 am | News | CommentsResearchers at Pompeu Fabra University (Spain) have created a high resolution atlas of the heart with 3D images taken from 138 people. The study demonstrates that an average image of an organ along with its variations can be obtained for the purposes of comparing individual cases and differentiating healthy forms from pathologies.
Has evolution given humans unique brain structures?
February 22, 2013 11:16 am | News | CommentsOur ancestors evolutionarily split from those of rhesus monkeys about 25 million years ago. Since then, brain areas have been added, have disappeared, or have changed in function. This raises the question: Has evolution given humans unique brain structures? Previous research has been inconclusive, but by combining different research methods, researchers in The Netherlands now say they have the first piece of evidence that could prove that humans have unique cortical brain networks.
Researchers develop tool for reading the minds of mice
February 19, 2013 3:41 pm | News | CommentsIf you want to read a mouse's mind, it takes some fluorescent protein and a tiny microscope implanted in the rodent's head. Stanford University scientists have demonstrated a technique for observing hundreds of neurons firing in the brain of a live mouse, in real time, and have linked that activity to long-term information storage. The work could provide a useful tool for studying new therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's.
Why cells stick: Phenomenon extends longevity of bonds between cells
February 15, 2013 8:50 am | News | CommentsResearch carried out by scientists at the Georgia Institute of Technology and The University of Manchester has revealed new insights into how cells stick to each other and to other bodily structures, an essential function in the formation of tissue structures and organs. It's thought that abnormalities in their ability to do so play an important role in a broad range of disorders, including cardiovascular disease and cancer.
Team creates MRI for the nanoscale
February 14, 2013 11:59 am | News | CommentsMagnetic resonance imaging (MRI) reveals details of living tissues, diseased organs and tumors inside the body without x-rays or surgery. What if the same technology could peer down to the level of atoms? Physicists in New York and Germany have worked together to make this type of nanoscale MRI possible. To do this, researchers used the tiny imperfections in diamond crystals known as nitrogen-vacancy centers.
Light-emitting bioprobe fits in a single cell
February 14, 2013 8:04 am | News | CommentsA Stanford University study is the first to demonstrate that sophisticated, engineered light resonators can be inserted inside cells without damaging the host. The researchers say it marks a new age in which tiny lasers and light-emitting diodes yield new avenues in the study and influence of living cells.
Spider skin image takes top prize in FEI’s nanoscale image contest
February 13, 2013 5:20 pm | News | CommentsMicroscope manufacturer FEI Company this week announced that Maria Carbajo from the Universidad de Extemadura, Spain, is the winner of the FEI Image Contest for her “Spider Skin” image. The image was obtained using an FEI Quanta DualBeam scanning electron microscope.
New MRI technique has ability to scan individual cells
February 12, 2013 7:35 am | News | CommentsResearchers have recently demonstrated magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) on the molecular scale through the use of artificial atoms, diamond nanoparticles doped with nitrogen impurity. Conventional MRI responds to the magnetic fields of atomic nuclei, but this new method improves resolution nearly one million times, allowing scientists to probe very weak magnetic fields such as those generated in some biological molecules and even proteins.
