McGill University in Montreal this week took delivery of a 7-tesla MRI scanner at its Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital.
The institute began planning for the installation of an ultrahigh-field MRI scanner back in 2008 with the design phase of its new north wing. The site specifications were set to accommodate the 70-ton weight of an MRI scanner and related shielding.
The project was helped with a grant worth $18.8 million Canadian ($14.4 million U.S.) in 2015 from the Canada Foundation for Innovation, Quebec's Ministry of Economy and Innovation, and corporate partners including the MRI scanner's manufacturer, Siemens Healthineers.
The 7-tesla scanner will be used for multiple provincial, national, and international projects and collaborations, including McGill's Healthy Brains for Healthy Lives initiative, which focuses on links between neurological health and overall well-being. All data collected by the system will be shared with the scientific community through the institute's open science policy.
The scanner is the first of several major planned acquisitions over the next few years to increase the institute's support for neuroscience research with the most advanced brain imaging systems, said Julien Doyon, PhD, director of the McConnell Brain Imaging Centre.
