Advanced Bioimaging

The Advanced Bioimaging Core (the AB CORE) makes innovative imaging technologies and infrastructures available to all PCIBMR members. The Core is conceived as a meta-institute entity across the School of Medicine, the School of Dental Medicine, and the Hillman Cancer Center of the University of Pittsburgh.

Please contact the PCIBMR AB Core directors: Dr. Giuseppe Intini and Dr. Deborah Galson, to learn how the PCIBMR can help you achieving your research goals utilizing the available resources. Contingent on the successful funding of our NIAMS P30 GRANT, additional support for access to these resources will become available.

Center for Biologic Imaging (CBI)

The Center for Biologic Imaging (CBI) is housed in the medical research facility of the University of Pittsburgh Medical School. The facility is a dedicated state of the art imaging center, and has fully equipped microscopy suites, computer labs, and wet and dry bench space for ex vivo and in vivo imaging. Critical to data processing, the CBI unit also offers a wide range of image analysis, quantitative evaluation software, and technical assistance to program investigators and their laboratory staff.

The Center is designed to be a “one stop shop” for all optical imaging needs.

For a full list of the equipment and for Tweets about updates and upcoming events, please see the CBI website. Please contact the director of the CBI, Dr. Simon Watkins, for questions about the Center and the available technologies.

Tomography Facility

The Tomography Facility is housed in the Salk Pavilion research building of the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine. The facility uses a newly acquired Scanco Medical µCT50 scanner (0.4-30µm voxel resolution) for high resolution ex vivo imaging acquisition and has an in vivo Scanco Medical scanner VivaCT 40 for in vivo imaging acquisition. It offers technical assistance and assistance with quantitative and qualitative data analysis.

Please contact the director of the Tomography Facility, Dr. Konstantinos Verdelis, for questions.

In Vivo Imaging Facility (IVIF)

The In Vivo Imaging Facility (IVIF) is located at the University of Pittsburgh Hillman Cancer Center and offers a variety of imaging modalities and services for intra-barrier pre-clinical research. Available technologies include the Lumina XR system for bioluminescence, fluorescence, and x-ray imaging; the Inveon small animal PET-CT for PET imaging and low to high resolution CT imaging; and the PreClinical 7 T MRI system for MR imaging.  Furthermore, the IVIF offers expertise and instruction in pre-clinical imaging and image analysis; pre-clinical animal models including bone metastases models; and the development and/or preparation of imaging agents.

For a full list of the equipment, please visit the IVIF website. Researchers interested in pre-clinical imaging at IVIF should contact its director, Dr. Jessie Nedrow.