Full-featured MRI upgrades research capabilities for brain science

Students are getting what has become essential hands-on training and expertise in the field of cognitive neuroscience, and faculty have a chance to develop programs that use state-of-the-art technology.

by Scott Turner

The face of brain science research at Brown has changed dramatically.

Upgrades to the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine at Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island (below) have created what some say is the state's fastest, most-capable MR imaging device.

The upgraded system is a partnership between Memorial and Brown's Brain Science Program. Memorial bought the original device and the Medical School financed its transformation into a clinical tool that is essential for state-of-the-art research in cognitive neuroscience.

An MRI uses radio waves and a strong magnetic field to provide detailed pictures of internal organs and tissues. The radio waves used for fMRI measure rapid, small changes in blood flow in an active part of the brain. With fMRI, a radiologist can get information essential to surgery, radiation therapy, stroke treatment or other interventions. It also can tell researchers where the brain handles the functions of speech, movement, vision and sensation.

Although employed primarily by Memorial radiologists and technologists, the device is used eight hours a week by Brown researchers. Brown’s time on the device is covered by grants from public agencies and private foundations.

For Brown faculty and students, the device offers the opportunity to better understand the basic functions and structure of the human brain — from cognition to sensation and movement — as well as neurological impairments and psychiatric disorders.

Jerome Sanes, who oversees Brown’s research and educational use of the Memorial MR system, directs the Brain Science Program's Magnetic Resonance Imaging Research Facility.

An associate professor of neuroscience, Sanes is also one of its chief clients. He studies the relationship between visual cues and voluntary movements. The machine’s quick-imaging capability allows Sanes and colleagues to record changes in brain blood flow as subjects move limbs based on objects they observe.

Last semester, Sanes and James Eliassen, a postdoctoral fellow in his laboratory, taught a graduate course on how to use an MR system for fMRI research purposes. Thirteen undergraduates and graduate students enrolled. A host of faculty and postdoctoral investigators audited the class, including Sheila Blumstein, professor of cognitive and linguistic sciences.

The fMRI "allows me to look at the neural basis of language processing in normal subjects," said Blumstein. "Up until now, I have used what is called the ‘lesion-deficit model,’ studying language impairments as a result of brain damage.

"A normal brain hasn’t had to compensate for a language deficit. Now we can study normal subjects and use the functional MRI to investigate the neural mechanisms involved in language understanding."

Having an fMRI allows faculty and students to develop research programs that use state-of-the-art technology, said Sanes.

"Students are getting what has become essential hands-on training and expertise in the field of cognitive neuroscience," he said. Blumstein added that by learning and using the basic methods of fMRI, students will be more attractive on the job market or for graduate school.

Availability of an MR system for research "has transformed the beginning of our understanding of the neural systems that underlie higher functions," Blumstein said. "It’s analogous to the technological advances in moving from the typewriter to the computer. It opens up a world of opportunity and possibilities. In fact, this critical tool will become one of the required methodologies for doing cognitive neuroscience research."

For Memorial's radiologists, the MRI helps deliver more-precise images that help physicians diagnose conditions and injuries.

For example, the new unit can perform magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), said Bradley Shapiro, M.D., clinical assistant professor of diagnostic imaging and Memorial’s radiologist-in-chief. It is a technique to image blood vessels such as the carotid arteries in the neck. The MRA evaluates patients with narrowing of the carotid arteries before surgery. It can replace the more invasive angiogram, which involves inserting a catheter in a patient's leg, he said.