Latest MRI facility inaugurated at NBRC
- Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology Dr Jitendra Singh launched the first of its kind, latest and world’s most sophisticated MRI facility at the National Brain Research Centre (NBRC), Manesar Haryana.
- With this technology, India has got a unique and powerful 3T MRI platform.
- The MRI Scanner Prisma from Siemens, Germany, is being used by several international initiatives, like Brain initiative of USA, the European human brain project.
Newly developed MRI facility
- The new MRI facility has the capability to run intense scanning modalities very fast, which reduces the scanning time for patients by almost a quarter from its predecessors.
- This is being used to develop human cohort data for patients suffering from common brain and mental health disorders that includes:
- Parkinson’s Disease
- Alziemer’s Disease
- Anxiety
- Depression
- PTSD
- Bipolar, etc.
- The novelty and newness of the machine is that it can also detect and quantify highly sensitive receptors and antioxidants from the brain which has a direct link with the onset of various brain disorders.
- The machine is equipped to detect brain sodium levels, which has direct relevance for assessment of brain tumors non-invasively.
- Also, heavy metal deposition in the brain due to pollution or many other factors can be quantified as necessary for various psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders.
About NBRC (National Brain Research Centre)
- With the aim of undertaking basic research to understand brain function in health and disease, NBRC is dedicated to studying brain functions in multidisciplinary approaches in basic and translational research.
- NBRC is an autonomous institute funded by the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India.
- Apart from undertaking basic research to understand brain function, NBRC also promotes networking of the existing research groups in neuroscience in the country."