Ultra-sensitive 3D molecular assays using total body PET and deep learning. Recent advances in biomedical engineering have led to the development of Total Body Positron Emission Tomography (TB-PET), the most sensitive imaging device to date. Despite these impressive engineering advances, computational methods lag far behind and model-based approaches cannot deal with the complexity or volume of data these systems produce. We will develop new computational methods based on deep learning and stati ....Ultra-sensitive 3D molecular assays using total body PET and deep learning. Recent advances in biomedical engineering have led to the development of Total Body Positron Emission Tomography (TB-PET), the most sensitive imaging device to date. Despite these impressive engineering advances, computational methods lag far behind and model-based approaches cannot deal with the complexity or volume of data these systems produce. We will develop new computational methods based on deep learning and statistical methods that fully exploit the richness and complexity of the data generated by TB-PET, enabling 3D quantitative assays of molecular processes throughout the entire human body with unparalleled sensitivity. The technology we create will open up new capability for the study of complex physiological systems.Read moreRead less
Novel tractography-guided MRI methods for studying healthy brain ageing. Advances in imaging, and particularly Magnetic Resonance Imaging, have opened a new era in the study of the brain enabling a myriad of neuroscience discoveries. This project aims to develop new analysis methods to study and understand the variability in the human brain during ageing, exploiting the wealth of information contained in the so-called tractogram, a mapping of the brain’s wiring. This project expects to develop i ....Novel tractography-guided MRI methods for studying healthy brain ageing. Advances in imaging, and particularly Magnetic Resonance Imaging, have opened a new era in the study of the brain enabling a myriad of neuroscience discoveries. This project aims to develop new analysis methods to study and understand the variability in the human brain during ageing, exploiting the wealth of information contained in the so-called tractogram, a mapping of the brain’s wiring. This project expects to develop innovative imaging biomarkers to characterise the brain changes in the course of healthy brain ageing. Expected outcomes include novel imaging tools for neuroscience, which should allow us to map trajectories of normative healthy brain ageing and use them to identify lifestyle factors that impact these trajectories.Read moreRead less
Development of new methods to measure in vivo properties of human body tissues. This project will develop new methods of noninvasively measuring the viscoelastic properties of soft tissues in live humans, using a novel magnetic resonance elastography technique. These methods will be applied to study the operation of the human muscle-tendon system, differences in neck muscle properties with age and gender and to measure the properties of the human brain, kidney and liver in vivo. These techniques ....Development of new methods to measure in vivo properties of human body tissues. This project will develop new methods of noninvasively measuring the viscoelastic properties of soft tissues in live humans, using a novel magnetic resonance elastography technique. These methods will be applied to study the operation of the human muscle-tendon system, differences in neck muscle properties with age and gender and to measure the properties of the human brain, kidney and liver in vivo. These techniques may be useful in diagnosing soft tissue disease or injury which are currently difficult to detect using standard imaging techniques. It will also explain how the muscle-tendon unit moves during normal motion in live humans.Read moreRead less
Creating a non-invasive window into the mind. This project aims to create better tools to study the human mind. This project expects to generate new knowledge that can be used to non-invasively image neuronal activity. Expected outcomes include the development of unique new Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) instruments to study neuronal activity in both highly controlled laboratory conditions and in humans, with the spatial and temporal resolution needed to study the neuronal circuitry that drive ....Creating a non-invasive window into the mind. This project aims to create better tools to study the human mind. This project expects to generate new knowledge that can be used to non-invasively image neuronal activity. Expected outcomes include the development of unique new Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) instruments to study neuronal activity in both highly controlled laboratory conditions and in humans, with the spatial and temporal resolution needed to study the neuronal circuitry that drives low and high-level brain functions, i.e., creating a window into the mind. In the future, outcomes from this study could improve our understanding of mental disorders, advance computer brain interface technology, and inspire the next paradigm shift in artificial intelligence.Read moreRead less
Novel methods for detecting changes in soft tissue microstructure and biomechanical properties using multi-modality MR imaging. This project will lead to novel methods for studying the internal structure of the soft tissues of the body, such as muscles and brain tissue, and how this is affected by mechanical loading and disease states. The project will thoroughly validate these new methods. This will not only provide new techniques for research use, but lead to improved diagnostic techniques in ....Novel methods for detecting changes in soft tissue microstructure and biomechanical properties using multi-modality MR imaging. This project will lead to novel methods for studying the internal structure of the soft tissues of the body, such as muscles and brain tissue, and how this is affected by mechanical loading and disease states. The project will thoroughly validate these new methods. This will not only provide new techniques for research use, but lead to improved diagnostic techniques in the future.Read moreRead less
Quantifying cortical thickness and white matter hyperintensity volumes and determining their relationship on Magnetic Resonance Imaging in ageing brains. Australia's population is ageing, with a significant projected increase in the number of people aged over 65 and 85. Mental health and quality of life for this ageing population have become an increasingly important issue. This project directly addresses the National Research Priority 2 in the terms of ageing well, ageing productively. Accurat ....Quantifying cortical thickness and white matter hyperintensity volumes and determining their relationship on Magnetic Resonance Imaging in ageing brains. Australia's population is ageing, with a significant projected increase in the number of people aged over 65 and 85. Mental health and quality of life for this ageing population have become an increasingly important issue. This project directly addresses the National Research Priority 2 in the terms of ageing well, ageing productively. Accurately measuring the distribution of brain structural changes is an effective way of differentiating normal ageing from various pathological conditions reflecting the underlying pathology. The project has access to an unprecedented large sample of longitudinal Magnetic Resonance Imaging and health/clinical data and will produce a set of algorithms to examine this issue and put Australia at the forefront of such research.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240100168
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$413,847.00
Summary
Self-Supervised Sequential Biomedical Image-Omics. This project aims to develop a self-supervised sequential biomedical image-omics model to uncover the underlying biological processes e.g., normal or abnormal. Sequential biomedical images are state-of-the-art imaging modalities which allow to depict changes in progression to the human body. New self-supervised machine learning algorithms are proposed to derive features from heterogenous and unlabelled sequential images. These derived features w ....Self-Supervised Sequential Biomedical Image-Omics. This project aims to develop a self-supervised sequential biomedical image-omics model to uncover the underlying biological processes e.g., normal or abnormal. Sequential biomedical images are state-of-the-art imaging modalities which allow to depict changes in progression to the human body. New self-supervised machine learning algorithms are proposed to derive features from heterogenous and unlabelled sequential images. These derived features will then be used to characterise the morphological and functional changes, which provide opportunities to increase understanding of progression of diseases of individual subject. The outcome from this project will provide new insights into system biology with potential future benefits in healthcare.Read moreRead less
Haemodynamic investigation of flow diverter stents for the treatment of intracranial aneurysms. This project will explore the engineering of a flow diverter, an endovascular device for the treatment of brain aneurysms. The project will determine the optimal design of new types of flow diverters, which in turn could improve the effectiveness of treatments, thus reducing the associated costs of cerebral haemorrhage and stroke.