400 MHz NMR spectrometer with microimaging

• Subject Area: Medicine
• Term: Funded in 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 553173121

The following application requests the procurement of a 400 MHz WB NMR spectrometer with microimaging unit, which is crucial for conducting imaging studies on small animals in vivo as well as for visualizing high-resolution structures in ex vivo samples. The requested instrument is intended to play a pivotal role in the establishment of a state-of-the-art research center dedicated to small animal imaging. This initiative aims to enhance the focus on imaging within the Medical Faculty of the University of Bonn and arises from the research collaborations established at the site over recent years for which longitudinal in vivo studies hold a key position. Furthermore, in 2021, the Medical Faculty, Department of Internal Medicine II, Heart Center Bonn, established the Professorship for Cardiovascular Imaging with a focus on small animal magnetic resonance imaging. Through the establishment of the professorship, as well as through the integration of the requested instrument into the Bonn Technology Campus (BTC), personnel and infrastructure have been created to effectively incorporate the system into ongoing research and sustainably use its capabilities. The MR imaging technology is intended to support the projects of all institutions at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB)/University of Bonn by visualizing and quantifying anatomical, morphological, structural, functional, and molecular parameters in vivo at both macroscopic and microscopic levels. The requested instrument is essential for almost every research project and thesis of the Cardiovascular Imaging Research Group. Small animal models are essential for all areas of successful, evidence-based science, as availability, generation time, genetic manipulation, and resource investment of small animals are favorable. To guarantee continuous research at a high level in the fields of oncology, neurology, immunology, and cardiology, a complete, dynamic assessment of complex molecular processes is mandatory. The non-invasive nature of MRI enables serial examinations on individual animals thereby ensuring the accurate monitoring of the dynamics of both physiological and pathological processes. Furthermore, non-invasive imaging is a cutting-edge and effective method within the framework of 3R research to minimize the number of animals (Reduction) and their suffering (Refinement) in experiments.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: 400 MHz NMR Spektrometer mit Mikroimaging
• Instrumentation Group: 1742 NMR-Spektrometer für Imaging-Anwendungen (außer 3231)
• Applicant Institution: Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn
• Leader: Professorin Dr. Verena Hörr