As part of its mission to pursue leading-edge, pre-clinical neuroimaging development and applications research, the McConnell Brain Imaging Centre (BIC) of the MNI operates a 7 Tesla, Bruker Pharmascan System (Bruker 70/16). The system is located in the Genome Quebec Innovation Centre of McGill University. The address of the Genome Centre is 740 Dr. Penfield Avenue, McGill University.

The 7 T Bruker Pharmascan is a pre-clinical proton MRI/MRS system which currently runs Bruker Paravision 5.1. The RF chain is equipped with one receive RF channel and one transmit RF channel connected to an AVANCE II RF amplifier architecture. The system has a clear bore size, without gradient insert, of 16 cm. We currently employ a specialized gradient insert, advantageously capable of field gradient amplitudes up to 600 mT/m, in the bore. The gradient insert reduces the bore diameter to 9 cm, but allows ultra high resolution structural scanning, advanced DTI and fMRI applications. The usable bore size of the system allows scanning of mice, rats, marmosets, ferrets, fixed brain tissue, MRI phantoms and contrast agents. The 7 T is also equipped with three volume resonator RF coils with inner diameters of 2.3 cm, 3.8 cm and 6.0 cm respectively. Surface coils are also available for mouse (x1) and rat (x1) imaging. The Paravision 5.1 operating system employed with the Pharmascan has a wide range of online image evaluation and visualization tools.

Peripherals used with the 7 T system include custom temperature and breathing monitoring, as well as control of heated air to warm animals in the magnet during scanning. Custom cradles for animal positioning are available for mice and rats. Additionally, cradles with attached bite and ear bars are also available for applications with stringent positioning requirements. The Small Animal MRI Unit is also equipped with four vaporizers (2x isoflurane and 2x sevoflurane). Two vaporizers are available for induction prior to imaging, while the remaining two vaporizers are used for anaesthesia during scanning. The unit is also equipped with two gas anaesthesia scavenging units in addition to animal surgical equipment.

david.rudko [at] mcgill.ca (Dr. David Rudko)
Assistant Professor 
Department of Neurology/Neurosurgery 
Department of Biomedical Engineering 
Director, 7 T Pre-Clinical MRI Unit

arturo.aliaga2 [at] mcgill.ca (Arturo Aliaga)
Research Assistant