Aspect Imaging, the world leading developer of high-performance compact magnets, announced the launch of its M2 3D MR-based histology system for in vivo and ex vivo toxicological imaging.
The M2 3D MR-based histology system is a compact, high-performance MRI instrument for high-throughput in vivo and ex vivo imaging of preclinical samples. The M2 provides all of the benefits of MRI including high-resolution 3D images of anatomical morphology and quantitative information of disease progression and regression. The M2’s novel design is based on a permanent magnet design meaning that the magnet does not require costly cryogens to cool and maintain its magnetic field. It is also “self-shielded” and consequently there is virtually no external fringe magnetic field. As a result, the compact MRI can be placed in most locations in a research lab and it does not require any special infrastructure. Aspect Imaging also provides a complete line of PhenoQuant contrast agents which further enhances the MR-based imaging of fixed samples and in vivo models.
MRI is a gold standard for 3D preclinical imaging but its inherent cost and complexity have made it inaccessible to the toxicologist. The M2 3D MR-based histology system allows research labs to leverage 3D morphological imaging to compliment and guide their traditional histology.
3D MR-based histology of fixed tissue specimens is gaining recognition as a technique to provide complimentary information to conventional histological techniques, as numerous digital slices from any plane of the intact sample can be acquired in 3D, quantified and then followed-up by conventional histology. A recent study validated mouse models of acute kidney injury (AKI) as quantified by in vivo MRI, ex vivo MR-based histology, and conventional histology and immunostaining. The high correlation between conventional histology and this platform shows the strong promise for using 3D MR-based histology to guide conventional histology in research and drug development toxicological settings.
Filed Under: Drug Discovery
