About us

The Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) core provides ONPRC investigators with equipment and assistance to perform MRI exams of NHP subjects.  As a satellite facility of the OHSU Advanced Imaging Research Center (AIRC), infrastructure and technical support exist to customize MRI investigations so that researchers can take advantage of the close similarity between human and NHP anatomy and physiology to develop new MRI research and diagnosis techniques and applications.

The ONPRC MRI building is a 2500 sq. ft. facility, housing a Siemens Magnetom 3 T whole-body MR instrument.  In the winter of 2017, the MRI system was upgraded with Prisma fit 4G technology.  A wide variety of radiofrequency coils are available to support a diverse array of applications. A 16-channel pediatric head coil fits both juvenile and adult rhesus macaque heads.  A custom-built 16-channel receive array is also available for studies focused on cerebral cortex. This coil is interfaced with a stereotaxic head positioning frame for the presentation of visual stimuli. Abdominal and fetal imaging is performed using a 15-channel "extremity" coil. Small and large flexible coils are also available that can be shaped to match the contour of the thorax or abdomen of the subjects. 

The MRI facility is attached to the Animal Services Building as well as the Primate Multimodal Imaging Center building, to facilitate ease of access for all NHP studies. A comprehensive MRI-compatible anesthesia delivery and physiological monitoring station is used to perform MRI measurements on NHP subjects while monitoring physiological parameters including respiration, arterial oxygenation, pulse rate, non-invasive blood pressure, respiration rate, end-tidal CO₂ partial pressure, and ECG.