Neuroimaging | Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain

Neuroimaging Hub: Advancing our understanding of brain development by supporting investigators with resources to ensure high rigor and innovation in neuroimaging for development neuroscience research

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Our Expertise

We are experts in state-of-the-art approaches in image acquisition, experimental design, preprocessing, data analysis, and flexible data sharing.

We foster collaboration within and across institutions to build teams with the highest possible degree of expertise. Ultimately, we seek to better understand the neural basis of cognition, emotion, and perception, discovering interactions between the brain, behavior, and the environment that shape changes throughout typical and atypical development.

Our Director

Steven Nelson, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics

How We Engage

Team

Nora Byington, BS
Neuroimaging Specialist
Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain

Steven Nelson, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Pediatrics

Kimberly Weldon, PhD
Research Project Specialist
Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain

Resources for Investigators

Siemens 3T Prisma Fit whole body MRI Scanner

The MIDB houses a Siemens 3T Prisma Fit whole body MRI scanner installed in 2021. The scanner is equipped with XR 80/200 gradient system with parallel transmit capabilities. A 64ch head/neck coil, 32ch head coil, 20ch head coil, and 16ch pediatric coils are available for use. See the installation video here.

Equipment Overview

NordicNeuroLab Tablet and VisualSystem HD
- Automated synchronization of tasks/visual stimuli and MRI scan
- HD goggles capable of eye-tracking data collection
OptoActive Headphones
- MRI safe headphones with active noise canceling to reduce in-scanner background noise
MReyes Camera
- Provides a clear view of the participant’s eyes to monitor alertness and changes in gaze
Framewise Integrated Real-time MRI Monitoring (FIRMM); FIRMM-pix, developed by NOUS Imaging
- Provides real-time monitoring of patient movement to scanner operators
- FIRMM-pix combines gamification and real-time biofeedback to participants to minimize motion and improve brain MRI data quality.
Mock Scanner suite
- Allows participants to experience the feel of an MRI before the real scan
- Helps reduce anxieties and prepare children for what to expect

Examples of Engagement

Neuroimaging Hub

Cullen, Kathryn – The effect of creativity intervention on creative processing in brain networks (May 2022)
Opitz, A. – Using fMRI to select targets in motor cortex for guided TMS (June 2022)
Conelea, C. and Nelson, S. – Feasibility of deep phenotyping in adolescents with depression, Tourette, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (July 2022)
Wozniak, J. – Neuroimaging and fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) (July 2022)
Fair, D. – Subpopulations in ADHD and ASD (July 2022)
Nahas, Z. – MRI-guided implantation of electrodes for treatment resistant depression (TRD) (Jul/Aug 2022)
Feczko, E. – Enhanced biofeedback in adolescents using FIRMM (Aug 2022)

Neuroimaging Papers of Interest

Rapid Precision Functional Mapping of Individuals Using Multi-Echo fMRI describes the potential utility of multi-echo fMRI for rapid precision mapping in research and clinical populations.
Brain-behavior correlations: Two paths toward reliability - A recent discussion on how human neuroscience can move forward by embracing alternate study designs to identify replicable brain-behavior associations.
Precision Functional Mapping of Individual Human Brains - A method for systematically characterizing brain function and organization in single individuals.
Lowering the thermal noise barrier in functional brain mapping with magnetic resonance imaging - Introduces NORDIC, a denoising technique that selectively suppresses the thermal noise contribution to fMRI data.