The Translational Optical Molecular Imaging: Nano to Macro short course will be at Duncan Hall, which is located near entrance 20 on the Rice University campus.
Technical sessions will take place in the McMurtry Auditorium, which is located in Duncan Hall. The foyer of Duncan Hall, called Martel Hall, will be used for the Welcome Dinner Reception, Poster Session and Industrial Exhibit Booths.
Course Planning Committee
- Rebecca Richards-Kortum, Ph.D., Stanley C. Moore Professor and
Chair of the Department of Bioengineering, Rice University
- John Hazle, Ph.D., Professor of Imaging Physics, Radiation Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Chair of the Department of Imaging Physics and Director of the NCI funded Small Animal Imaging Facility (SAIF), UT M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
- Mary Dickinson, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Molecular Physiology & Biophysics, Baylor College of Medicine
- Veronique Tran, Ph.D., Executive Director of Departmental Advancement, Rice University
Host Institutions
The short course will be co-hosted by the:
The collaborative relationship between these three institutions fosters translational research at the interface of the physical and life sciences. Through the continued development of the Collaborative Research Center (CRC), the interdisciplinary biotechnology and bioscience research shared between the institutions and more than 40 member institutions of the Texas Medical Center (TMC) will have a tremendous impact on science and engineering as it integrates the academic, industrial, and societal perspectives.
The Department of Bioengineering,
Rice University
The Department of Bioengineering is consistently ranked among the nation’s top 10 graduate programs in bioengineering/biomedical engineering. Both undergraduate and graduate programs offer innovative training and curriculum to prepare the next generation of leaders in basic, applied, and translational research at the interface of biology and engineering.
Currently, 20 research and teaching faculty members have their primary appointments in bioengineering. Several hold adjunct appointments at the TMC and/or collaborate with the TMC on clinical research projects. The department also benefits from eight multi-disciplinary joint faculty within various science and engineering departments at Rice. A network of more than 40 adjunct faculty collaborates with the department.
Several Rice Bioengineering researchers conduct research in translational molecular cancer imaging and diagnostics. Their efforts specialize in the development of novel, nanoscale contrast agents for real-time, high-resolution molecular imaging, as well as the development of optical systems that image and monitor cancers and other diseases in vivo.
Research developments in this field are leveraged by the department’s unique capabilities in nanobiotechnology and molecular electronics. Efforts to employ sensitive single-molecule optical tools are being used to understand how motor proteins network and transport intracellular cargo to specific locations inside cells. Progress toward a molecular characterization of diseases, such as cancer, would have important clinical benefits, including:
- Detecting cancer earlier based on molecular characterization,
- Predicting the risk of pre cancerous lesion progression,
- Detecting margins in the operating room in real time,
- Selecting molecular therapy rationally, and
- Monitoring response to therapy in real-time at the molecular level.
Contrast agents under investigation include, metallic nanoparticles, quantum dots, and molecular beacons. These efforts integrate novel approaches in drug delivery to image intracellular targets as well as novel molecular engineering approaches to develop high affinity contrast agents. At the same time, we are developing inexpensive, portable optical systems to image the morphologic and molecular signatures of neoplasia noninvasively in real time. Using advances in microfabrication and MEMS technology, these systems can assess both native optical contrast as well as that afforded by optically active contrast agents. These real-time, portable, inexpensive systems can provide tools to characterize the molecular features of cancer in vivo.
Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Baylor College of Medicine
The Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) is an independent medical school dedicated to Medical and Graduate Training, state-of-the-art basic and clinical research, and top-level patient care. US News & World Report’s 2007 evaluation ranked the BCM 10th among the nation's top medical schools for research and 11th for primary care. BCM has 25 departments with more than 90 patient care centers and boasts $374 million in total research support with $314 million from Federal sources. In recent years, the BCM has dramatically expanded its optical imaging technology and research.
The Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics at the BCM applies modern methods of molecular and cell biology, genetics, neuroscience, imaging, electrophysiology, biophysics, immunology, protein biochemistry, and pharmacology to the study of problems of physiological importance. The department is highly interactive with ongoing research in the areas of:
- Drug and gene delivery
- Development of biosensors for genetic diagnosis
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
- Structure and function of ion channels and transport proteins
- Cell cycle control
- Neuronal morphology
- Redox signaling
- Signal transduction
- Synaptic plasticity
- Reactive oxygen species
Department of Imaging Physics, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center (UTMDACC) is consistently ranked among the nation’s top two cancer hospitals in the U.S. and leads the nation in total funding received from the National Cancer Institute. The UTMDACC has identified medical imaging as a strategic corridor of research opportunity in the pursuit of eradicating cancer as a major health issue. Significant investments have been made in small animal imaging and molecular imaging, and will continue with the construction of a 175,000 sq ft building to house the Center for Advanced Biomedical Imaging Research (CABIR) slated to open in 2008.
The Department of Imaging Physics is part of UTMDACC’s Division of Diagnostic Imaging. The department includes 11 medical physicists who are conducting research projects in their areas of expertise, and 5 research faculty members who focus in defined areas of imaging research.
Research in the department is focused on instrumentation used to perform magnetic resonance (MR), digital X-ray imaging, computed tomography (CT), the dosimetry of unsealed internal radiation emitters used in nuclear medicine, positron emission tomography (PET) and minimally invasive image-guided therapies. The department manages a state-of-the-art institutional Small Animal Cancer Imaging Research Facility (SACIRF). Instrumentation currently includes a state-of-the-art 4.7 T, 40 cm MR imaging/spectroscopy system, an Enhanced Vision Systems, Concorde Microsystems micro-PET camera, and a Siemens M.Cam experimental gamma camera. A revolutionary new volume CT scanner is being developed in collaboration with the General Electric Global Research Center in Schnectady, N.Y. to allow for the rapid, isotropic acquistion of ultra-high-resolution CT images.
A translational research facility for Image Processing and Visualization is currently being established as a new Imaging Physics resource. This laboratory, like the SACIRF, will be managed by Imaging Physics as an institutional resource. Investigators will be able to access the facility's resources and contract for services on an as-needed basis. |
Duncan Hall (above) is located near entrance 20 on the Rice University campus.
The short course Welcome Dinner Reception, Poster Session and Industrial Exhibit will be in the foyer
of Duncan Hall (above).
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