Ultra-high-field magnetic resonance is a state-of-the-art electromagnetic imaging equipment in the fields of physics, biology, and medical research. It boasts sub-millimeter-level high-resolution imaging capabilities, playing an irreplaceable role in early detection of malignant tumors, non-invasive mapping of human brain mesoscale connectomes, and other leading-edge clinical and basic research areas. Currently, the entry-level 7T human ultra-high-field MRI system is priced at over 100 million CNY, and only a very few hospitals and research institutions in China are equipped with it. However, this extremely expensive medical imaging equipment struggles to perform imaging of certain body parts (such as the chest and abdomen) that conventional medical MRI systems (1.5T and 3T) can handle, significantly limiting the clinical diagnostic applications of ultra-high-field MRI.
Recently, Professor Jiang Wen's PI team, with Associate Professor Gao Yang from the Xi'an University of Electronic Science and Technology's Hangzhou Research Institute, proposed a novel magnetic resonance traveling wave transmission system. By incorporating a hollow dielectric waveguide structure around the imaging object, the system efficiently controls electromagnetic waves within large biological entities, addressing the low transmission efficiency and the issue of spin proton excitation discrepancies in large-scale spaces encountered by traditional methods. This research was published in the journal Nature Communications. Furthermore, in collaboration with Researcher Zhang Xiaotong from Zhejiang University, the team's findings were validated on a Siemens 7T MRI system, achieving human head imaging data with low standing wave artifacts.
The latest 7T MRI imaging technique showcases minimal standing wave artifacts. Image courtesy of the study's authors.
For further details, check out the paper here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-46638-5
