Research - Biomedical Imaging

New developments in biomedical imaging provide a window into complex biological phenomena. Imaging enables researchers to track the movements of molecules, cells, fluids, gases, or sometimes even whole organisms. Imaging techniques such as x-ray crystallography and magnetic resonance imaging can also yield information about important biological structures from single proteins to the human brain. The frontiers of biomedical imaging promise to make diagnosis of disease more accurate and less invasive, and to improve our understanding of disease.

At Stanford, Imaging research encompasses:

  • Imaging of protein complexes involved in synaptic communication in the brain
  • Fluorescence tagging of molecules involved in intracellular signaling networks
  • Non-invasive imaging of cancer
  • Imaging of human movement using dynamic MR, motion capture systems, and ultrasonic imaging
  • Molecular and biochemical imaging with PET, SPECT, and optical imaging
  • Three-dimensional medical imaging of blood flow, blood vessels, and cardiovascular lesions
  • Functional human brain mapping
  • Strategies for fusing images across modalities (e.g., CT and MR)
  • Ultrasonic diagnostic technology in medicine
  • Computational analysis and reconstruction of complex imaging data

Bioengineering faculty members working in this area are