Chemical engineering professor receives ADECA funding for MRI agent research

Governor Kay Ivey has awarded $1.3 million to stimulate new research and development at three Alabama universities and university systems, with Auburn University receiving more than $180,000 in funds. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is administering the grants.

Auburn University received $184,773 from the fund to conduct research to develop an MRI agent that is optimized for the imaging of cardiovascular disease. The principal investigator on the project is Allan David, John W. Brown associate professor of chemical engineering and associate dean for research.

Currently, contrast agents that are based on the element gadolinium are used during MRI scans to improve detection of disease. These gadolinium-based agents, which can be toxic if retained in the body, are designed to be flushed out of the body quickly. David and the co-principal investigators on the project are working on iron-based contrast agent, made of magnetic nanoparticles, that are attractive for biomedical applications because they are safer and provide enhanced images on MRI scans.

“We are working on an iron-based particle that would clear quickly, like gadolinium,” David said. “In my research group, we delve into methods to take a heterogeneous formulation and make it more homogeneous, so we get better control of the properties of these particles.”

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