MRI Analysis Center
The Magnetic Resonance Imaging Analysis Center was formally established to provide semi automated quantitative image analysis in support of our local research programs and to help in the monitoring of important multi-center and international clinical trials in 1998. Since its inception the MRI-AC has served as a central image analysis laboratory for a number of phase 2 and phase 3 clinical trials of promising agents for the treatment of all forms of multiple sclerosis supported by the National Institutes of Health and various pharmaceutical companies. The MRI-AC has provided critical data in particular on the short term natural history of primary progressive MS in relation to other, more common relapsing forms of the disease. The studies that are currently supported by the MRI-AC are all either continuing to enroll subjects, or are close but in active phases of the evaluation of therapy involving more than several thousand patients. We currently receive scans from nearly 200 sites participating in sanofi aventis or NIH sponsored trials with clinical imaging sites located in Australia, Austria, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the UK and across the USA.
The MRI-AC has installed a mass storage system for consolidated archiving of all trial image data and for the express purposes of raw image data storage and processing. The system is housed in a protected environment server farm in the medical school configured for operation in UTHSCH firewall zone 100 and managed by UT IT. Backups are performed nightly to an offsite for data protection and long term archiving. Copies of all tapes are bar-coded and stored locally and off site in a tape vault; measures intended to protect the data from natural or terrorist events. The core facility of the MRI-AC composes 1,300 square feet of developed space located on the 7th floor of the medical school. It houses multiple PCs and other related electronics. The area is divided into two suites, one with desks for up to 5 image analysis technicians, and another with 6 separated work cubicles. Each workstation has a PC and dedicated phone line. All of the PCs have access to the protected university network.
- Jerry S. Wolinsky, M.D., Director
- Flavia Nelson, M.D., Associate Director
- Irina Vainrub, M.D., Senior Research Associate
- Kelly Ton, System Analyst III
- Lucille Lambert , Research Coordinator I
- Rimma Brokhin, Research Assistant II
- Brandi Gates, Research Assistant II
- Ramona Barac, M.D., Research Assistant I
- Andrew Tilker, Research Assistant I
Center Personnel
MR Research Group
The MRRG, lead by Dr. Ponnada A. Narayana, spearheads the development of the image analysis software used by the MRI-AC. In very close collaboration the team members of the MRI-AC and MRRG have worked in an iterative fashion to both develop and field validate the groups approach to semi automated and automated quantitative image analysis. For further information on the MRRG and its members, visit here : http://www.uth.tmc.edu/radiology/narayana/pub_index.htm
