Clinical and preclinical imaging
We offer world class clinical imaging systems to meet research and diagnostic needs.
Edinburgh Imaging
Based in: Queen's Medical Research Institute (QMRI), BioQuarter campus
Contact: Edinburgh Imaging
Edinburgh Imaging is a partnership between the University and NHS Lothian that delivers world-class clinical imaging outputs to meet research and diagnostic needs.
Due to its unique mix of expert staff, cutting-edge advanced imaging equipment and close integration with NHS Lothian, Edinburgh Imaging is capable of providing high-quality and high-volume imaging needs for any potential partner. Its principal user groups are academic researchers, NHS clinicians and commercial imaging organisations, including biotech, pharmaceutical and private medical industries.
The academic, scientific and technical expertise based within Edinburgh Imaging encompasses a broad range of specialities including cardiology, stroke, small vessel disease, neurodegeneration (including Alzheimer’s dementia), liver disease, as well as perinatal physiology and morbidity.
Edinburgh Imaging operates two facilities with imaging equipment including MR, CT, PET and retinal scanners, with functional imaging capabilities ranging from fMRI to PET CT and Scotland’s only PET MR. Laboratories include extensive radiochemistry production facilities, as well as image analysis and data processing teams.
Our Good Manufacturing Practice-accredited radiochemistry production facility develops, manufactures and distributes novel radiotracers in addition to a range of clinically routine products.
Image Analysis Core (part of the Edinburgh Clinical Research Facility, CRF)
Based in: QMRI
Facility manager/ lead contact: Dr Tom MacGillivray
The Image Analysis Core supports people conducting research featuring medical imaging. Image analysis is the use of computers to extract meaningful information from images. Its role in medical research is often to detect and measure regions, objects or features of interest. Some examples of this include:
- quantifying the size of a lung tumour on CT and how it changes over time in response to a treatment
- measuring the volume of different structures within the brain from MRI
- capturing the motion of the walls of the heart on MRI to calculate how much blood is pumped out with each contraction
- quantifying the size and patterns of small blood vessels visible with retinal imaging to identify abnormalities.
This Core lab is available to researchers (both in person and virtually via remote access) who wish to access:
- our expertise in image analysis techniques and methods
- specialist software hub for analysing different types of medical images
- training to build your own skills and expertise
- analysis of image data we can perform for your study or trial
- help with study/trial design and grant applications.
The staff works and collaborates with researchers from across Edinburgh as well as people from other academic institutions (both nationally and internationally). They also work with commercial organisations who wish to conduct contract research. The Core lab's activities and expertise include clinical trial work.
Edinburgh Preclinical Imaging
Based in: The Chancellor’s Building
Facility manager/ lead contact: Dr Maurits Jansen
Edinburgh Preclinical imaging (EPI) is a state-of-the-art facility providing in vivo, non-invasive imaging of structure and function of all organs and tissues of the body.
The research focus of EPI is strongly interdisciplinary, and the EPI team brings together extensive experience in in-vivo animal models of disease, which is applied to wide range of research questions.
EPI houses four imaging modalities:
- high-field (9.4T) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
- ultrasound,
- optical imaging
- micro PET/CT imaging.
A PET/MRI scanner will be installed in the near future.
Being placed on the BioQuarter campus, the facility is ideally placed to provide cross-disciplinary work in cardiovascular biology, neuroscience and physiology. We aim to establish an integrated strategy for the development and application of novel in vivo imaging technologies to further understand the mechanisms of disease and develop therapeutic strategies.