Ongoing Doctoral Research
PI: Heather Clark
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is a powerful tool for clinical diagnostics and research. Using MRI we are able to image physical structures and sense biomolecules deep within the body without invasive and disruptive surgery. However, traditional contrast enhanced in-vivo MRI is a fundamentally qualitative technique, limiting our ability to study the biochemistry of the human body. My research focuses on the design of a nanosensor + image analysis technology capable of quantitative MRI. By applying improvements in MRI scan acquisition and using recent advancements in MR-physics to inform sensor design we can overcome current limitations of MRI. In the future, we hope this technology will open new avenues for research using MRI to track, understand, and eventually influence the behavior of biomolecules.