A J M Watson Prof. T Strachan Prof. N A Wright Prof. S J Hill Prof. The techniques are powerful but complementary ways of non-invasively imaging both body structure and function by revealing areas of metabolic activity within the body are active under particular experimental circumstances. These techniques are generally used on healthy subjects and also to shed light on abnormal function in disease. As genome sequencing reveals the sequence of genes, a major challenge is to understand how these genes work in a living organism, and to apply that knowledge to improve treatments.
Mice are a valuable model in which to explore whole-animal physiology.
The great advantage of such models is that they can be deliberately manipulated in ways that are not feasible in human subjects. This imaging centre will therefore be fully integrated with a transgenic mouse facility that will create specific genetic variants for the imaging facility, to help correlate gene with biological function. With the facility close to the existing clinical centre on the Hammersmith campus, interactions with ongoing clinical research will help to ensure that the rodent work is medically relevant.