University of Iowa installs nearly $8 million magnet

IOWA CITY - Weighing 42 tons, the University of Iowa's new magnet is the size of six adult male elephants. It took a trailer, which had previously hauled a tank, to transport the magnet from Baltimore to the under construction Pappajohn Biomedical Discovery Building in Iowa City.

But the instrument's true power lies in how it can make tiny areas of the brain and body more accessible and understood - allowing researchers to answer questions about Parkinson's disease and Epilepsy.

'I'm really excited to be able to ... start collecting data and answer questions that we couldn't before,” said Vincent Magnotta, associate professor of radiology and director of the UI's Magnetic Resonance Imaging facility.

The magnet will power a 7 Tesla MRI, which is more than four times more powerful than most clinical scanners.

This increased visibility will enable researchers such as William Hedgcock, UI assistant professor of marketing, to delve more deeply into how age-related changes affect financial decisions for senior citizens, such as why older people can be more susceptible to scams.

Hedgcock's studies are specifically focused on the emotional responses tied to these decisions, which can happen in relatively small areas of brain. The extra power in the 7 Tesla MRI will make some of these processes visible for the first time at the UI while enhancing what already can be observed.

A $7.97 million federal grant awarded in 2010 paid for the new technology. Magnotta wrote the grant, which he said has the opportunity to bring in future funding specially tied to 7 Tesla research after the university demonstrates what it can do with the scanner.

The scanner should be operational by the fall and later additions, such as a full body coil, will help neuroscientists and others who use the equipment.

Magnotta said people beyond the UI will be able to grow an approval process to use the scanner. He also envisions possible collaborations with other universities who have the technology.