The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute issued a Notice of Award to principal investigator Iulian C. Ruset, PhD regarding his grant entitled “Optimized whole-lung mapping of alveolar oxygen concentration using hyperpolarized xenon MRI.” This project is a collaboration between Xemed and the Center for in-vivo Hyperpolarized Gas MR Imaging at the University of Virginia, funded through the SBIR program as a Phase 2 project. Dr. Ruset is Director of Imaging Applications for Xemed LLC and will lead Xemed’s effort. G. Wilson Miller, PhD will lead the efforts of the University of Virginia team.
The proposal narrative describes the goals of this project:” Pulmonary functional magnetic resonance imaging with hyperpolarized xenon, a technology which recently improved by two orders of magnitude, has the potential to address unmet needs in managing a full range of lung diseases, including COPD, asthma, cystic fibrosis, and interstitial diseases. We propose to develop an innovative, robust, and quantitative probe of regional alveolar oxygen concentration with high resolution in three-dimensions and validate it against truth standards. This non-ionizing, well-tolerated, quick, and affordable imaging modality would provide pulmonologists caring for children through adult patients with maps of the highest measure of lung function: regional oxygen exchange into the bloodstream.”