The Center for Hyperpolarization in Magnetic Resonance, a new center of excellence in the Biomedical Engineering Group at DTU, was awarded 55 million DKK by The Danish National Research Foundation.
For the very first time, the National Research Foundation has awarded a researcher from the industry one of their very sought after grants.
The director of the new Center of Excellence, Center for Hyperpolarization in Magnetic Resonance, Professor Jan Henrik Ardenkjær-Larsen, who today holds the titles of Principal Scientist at GE Healthcare, Denmark and adjunct professor in the Biomedical Engineering Group at DTU will now be permanently employed at DTU, where he will lead the center.
A grant from the Danish National Research Foundation is one of the most sought after a Danish researcher can achieve. This is because the funding is long-lasting and large by Danish standards, and because it gives the recipient the opportunity to pursue a project without major constraints.
The hyperpolarizing is an advanced technological approach to excite a substance. A substance with a strong magnetic signal can be used for medical imaging and in the diagnosis of cancer. When the drug is injected into the patient, a subsequent MRI scan can identify the cancer as well as look into tumour metabolism. This allows doctors get a better idea of how aggressive the cancer is and whether it responds to treatment. Correspondingly, hyperpolarization using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) could provide a window into the cells' inner world, thus providing a tool for understanding and optimizing both human and industrial use of cell function. Hyperpolarization using DNP is still in its infancy. A better understanding and theoretical description of the fundamental scientific processes behind DNP hyperpolarization will be pivotal in this Center of Excellence.