Dynamic Nuclear Polarization: Increasing MRI Signals by >10,000-fold

Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) via the dissolution method is an emerging physics technique that amplifies the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) or imaging (MRI) signals by several thousand-fold. The MRI signal amplification works via microwave-driven transfer of the high electron spin alignment to the nuclear spins at high magnetic field and low temperature. The frozen hyperpolarized samples are then dissolved into hyperpolarized liquids at physiologically tolerable temperatures for in vivo metabolic imaging applications. In this talk, the current DNP instrumental advances and applications to cancer imaging diagnostics will be discussed. In particular, the optimization methods to maximize MRI signal enhancements by >10,000-fold will be discussed in light of its applications in tracking abnormal metabolism in aggressive cancers.