Project Grant R01EB036575

Vanderbilt University Medical Center received a $499,651 Project Grant award from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) under the Discovery and Applied Research for Technological Innovations to Improve Human Health program (CFDA 93.286), effective June 4, 2026, with completion targeted for March 31, 2030. This grant funds the development and validation of a real-time head motion correction system for brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) utilizing inductively coupled wireless nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) probes. The project will deliver technical innovations including rapid ultrashort echo navigators, optimized probe designs with tuned relaxivities, real-time filtering and shimming capabilities, and channel-wise data processing algorithms designed to enhance motion correction robustness across multiple neuroimaging sequences.

The grant deliverables encompass two primary aims: fabrication of wireless NMR probes coupled with software and hardware development for phantom validation in structural and functional MRI scans; and clinical validation demonstrating motion correction effectiveness for both voluntary and involuntary head motions in healthy adults and typically developing children. The system will be validated across two leading vendor platforms—Philips and Siemens—at 3 Tesla field strength, with particular emphasis on pediatric imaging applications where head motion presents significant diagnostic challenges. The prospective correction technology is designed to be cost-effective, robust, and implementable across vendor platforms with plug-and-play operational characteristics.