Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging

The Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Training Program, funded by the National Cancer Institute (5T32CA009502), trains MD and PhD researchers to develop an in-depth understanding of biomedical imaging principles and techniques and apply these to experimental disease models and clinical situations. This program funds up to four trainees per year to pursue research training that is directly applicable to the advancement of our understanding diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

The faculty consists of MD and PhD scientists with extensive experience in clinical and basic science imaging research and in pre and postdoctoral education. A cirriculum of teaching, laboratory exercises and individual research projects provides trainees with the tools to pursue an academic career in biomedical imaging research. While all trainees are encouraged to gain a working knowledge to perform basic studies on all NMR instrumentation including he imaging magnets and spectrometers, we recognize the importance of other imaging modalities in the future of cancer research, and are now offering training in optical and PET imaging as part of the cirriculum. Trainees participate in design, data collection and analysis of ongoing research projects and are encouraged to publish results and present at local, national and international meetings. Trainees will also have opportunities to interact with several other training programs within the hospital.

NIH trainees have no direct patient care responsibilities, however they will have the opportunity (depending on their individual interests) to work on clinical research projects. The specific activities of each clinical research project are approved by the MGH Human Studies Committee and supervised the faculty preceptor.

This Training Program selects candidates based on their qualifications and commitment to an academic career. Candidates are considered without regard to sex, religion, or ethic or racial background. Minorities are encouraged to apply. Must be a US Citizen or Green Card Holder. A two year commitment is required for this position.

Applications are accepted throughout the year. Please send a CV and letter of interest to:

Dr. Gregory Sorensen, MD (sorensen@nmr.mgh.harvard.edu)
Training Program Director
Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging
Building 149 13th Street (CNY2301),
Charlestown, MA 02129

MEMP Neuroimaging Graduate Training Program

The Neuroimaging Training Program is a unique multidisciplinary curriculum in biomedical imaging focuses on the application of modern brain imaging tools to solving basic and clinical neuroscience questions such as the underlying etiology of brain-based disorders, mechanisms of treatment, and predictors of response. The thirty faculty preceptors are drawn from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Harvard Medical School (HMS) and the Harvard teaching hospitals. The program is offered via the Medical Engineering/Medical Physics (MEMP) graduate education program of the joint Division of Health Sciences and Technology (HST) of Harvard University and MIT and is sponsored by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) (5T32EB001680).

US Citizens or Green Card Holders only may apply.
For more information and to apply, contact Randy Gollub, MD, PhD

Graduate Training in Psychology and Neuroimaging

This innovative new collaborative training program, conducted in collaboration with the Harvard University Psychology Department and sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (1T32MH070328), offers graduate training in the use of neuroimaging to investigate the workings of the brain and mind. This program will prepare future cognitive neuroscientists to address key issues in psychology using behavioral methods in combination with cutting-edge neuroimaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), magnetoencephalography (MEG), electroencephalography (EEG), positron emission tomography (PET), and near-infrared spectrography (NIRS).

The program includes 22 faculty members, half each from the Psychology Department at Harvard University and the Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging. Throughout their training, students are co-advised by a pair of faculty members, one from each institution. Students are admitted into a division in the Harvard Psychology Department and are expected to fulfill the requirements of that specific division, including first-year, second-year and Ph.D. thesis research projects. In addition, every trainee takes two team-taught courses in their first two years: a course in Cognition, Brain and Behavior (taught by all the training faculty in psychology and faculty in cognitive psychology at the Martinos Center) and an intensive introduction to functional brain imaging (taught by training and other faculty from the Martinos Center). In subsequent years, trainees enroll in a research seminar jointly taught by all faculty. Students explore particular areas of cognitive and brain function in depth, develop skills for crafting experiments that dissect specific cognitive functions, present their research, and interact with other trainees in the program and at the Martinos Center. The goal of these requirements is to impart knowledge that is both broad and deep, about the human brain and about the cognitive functions that it performs.

US Citizens or Green Card Holders only may apply.
For more information, contact Steve Kosslyn, PhD, Training Program Director, or Moshe Bar, PhD, Program Cognitive Neuroimaging Director

Advanced Multimodal Neuroimaging Training Program (predoctoral)

This program provides an opportunity for advanced Harvard University, Harvard Medical School, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate students from a variety of disciplines and departments to pursue neuroimaging research, typically for one year. The program offers interdisciplinary training designed to integrate basic and cognitive neuroscience applications with the fundamental physical and biological bases of neuroimaging. Through coursework and hands on experience with the technologies and analytic methods of neuroimaging, trainees are prepared to apply brain imaging technologies to understanding questions in neuroscience.

The focus of the training is a jointly mentored research project. The project constitutes the student’s PhD thesis, or part thereof, and expands the student’s training from neuroscience to physical science, or vice versa. Mentors include the student’s primary advisor from his/her graduate program and a joint project mentor with complimentary expertise (e.g. in basic or translational neuroimaging, engineering, cognitive or basic neuroscience, etc). Students are expected to spend time in both the laboratories of the primary and joint project mentors, and to engage in coursework and other educational activities.
The program provides funds for a graduate stipend, a travel allowance, and tuition & fees. This program is available to both US citizens and non-US citizens.

University Courses

Spatial Aspects of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy HST 562J

This special topics class will cover current research in molecular and cellular neuroimaging, with reference to classic work. The course will be organized as a "journal club," focused on a reading list including papers on functional imaging contrast, cellular basis of BOLD, molecular neuroimaging with MRI and other methods, dyes and contrast agents, and more. Coursework will consist entirely of reading, in-class oral presentation of papers (students will take turns), and participation in discussions.

Offered alternate years: Fall 2006

Imaging Biophysics and Clinical Applications HST 563

This team-taught course takes advantage of the many, diverse HST-affiliated imaging labs and faculty to provide a broad introduction to the range of applications of biomedical imaging in research as well as in the clinic, including discussions of those imaging modalities not fully addressed in other classes such as HST 560J (ultrasound, MEG and optical imaging, for example).

The course introduces students to a) connections and distinctions between various imaging modalities, b) common goals of biomedical imaging, c) broadly defined targets of biomedical imaging, and d) the current practical and economic landscape of biomedical imaging research. Together with HST560J, and forthcoming HST courses, it prepares students for careers in biomedical imaging.

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging: Data Acquisition and Analysis HST 583

This team-taught, multidisciplinary graduate-level course, offered via the MIT/Harvard University Health Sciences and Technology Division, provides information relevant to the conduct and interpretation of human brain mapping studies. In-depth coverage of the physics of image formation, mechanisms of image contrast, and the physiological basis for image signals. Parenchymal and cerebrovascular neuroanatomy and application of sophisticated structural analysis algorithms for segmentation and registration of functional data discussed. Additional topics include fMRI experimental design including block design, event related and exploratory data analysis methods, and building and applying statistical models for fMRI data. Human subject issues including informed consent, institutional review board requirements and safety in the high-field environment are presented. Twice weekly lectures and weekly laboratory and discussion sessions. Laboratory will include fMRI data acquisition sessions and data analysis workshops. Assignments include reading of both textbook chapters and primary literature as well as fMRI data analysis in the laboratory. Probability, linear algebra, differential equations, and introductory or college-level subjects in neurobiology, physiology, and physics required.

Course Director: Randy Gollub

Instructors: B. Dickerson, J. Gabrieli, S. Whitfield-Gabrieli, D. Greve, K. Helmer, S. Pujol, B. Rosen, K. Triantafyllou, D. Salat, R. Savoy, A.G. Sorensen, M. Vangel, L. Wald, A. Yendiki, D. Bolar, M. Sabuncu

Offered alternate years: Fall 2008

Magnetic Resonance: Analytic, Biochemical and Imaging Techniques HST 584J

This graduate level course offered via the MIT Health Sciences and Technology program is an introduction to basic NMR theory. Examples of biochemical data obtained using NMR are summarized along with other related experiments. Detailed study of NMR imaging techniques includes discussions of basic cross-sectional image reconstruction, image contrast, flow and real-time imaging, and hardware design considerations. Exposure to laboratory NMR spectroscopic and imaging equipment is included.

Graduate and Post Graduate Training Programs and Courses

Training Programs

Postdoctoral Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Research Training Program (for Cancer-related Biomedical Imaging)