Robin de Graaf PhD

Associate Professor of Diagnostic Radiology and of Biomedical Engineering

Research Interests

Cerebral energy metabolism

Research Summary

The main focus of Dr. Robin de Graaf's research is the study of cerebral energy metabolism and its relationship to functional activation in human and animal brains. NMR spectroscopy (proton, (inverse) carbon-13, oxygen-17 and phosphorus-31) is the most important tool in the study of metabolic processes and fluxes, non-invasively in vivo. Besides studying brain energy metabolism, a significant part of the research his reserved for technological and methodological improvements to the technique of NMR spectroscopy. These include methods for better water suppression, spatial localization, spectral editing, quantification, and shimming. Dr. de Graaf's current research focus covers three areas. Developing methods to achieve magnetic field uniformity throughout the human and animal brain are central to the technological innovation of his research. The problem of magnetic field inhomogeneity is tackled through dynamic shimming and through the use of electrical coil and passive shim element arrays. 13C NMR methods have been pioneered at the Yale MRRC and part of his research is to extend those methods to achieve 3D coverage, higher sensitivity (through 1H detection), and higher specificity (e.g., GABA turnover detection). Finally, the field of 17O NMR appears promising for fast and sensitive mapping of a variety of metabolic fluxes. Research covers the synthesis of 17O-labeled compounds, the development of novel 17O MR methods, and the in vivo detection of 17O label turnover.

Extensive Research Description

The main focus of Dr. Robin de Graaf's research is the study of cerebral energy metabolism and its relationship to functional activation in human and animal brains. NMR spectroscopy (proton, (inverse) carbon-13, oxygen-17 and phosphorus-31) is the most important tool in the study of metabolic processes and fluxes, non-invasively in vivo. Besides studying brain energy metabolism, a significant part of the research his reserved for technological and methodological improvements to the technique of NMR spectroscopy. These include methods for better water suppression, spatial localization, spectral editing, quantification, and shimming. Dr. de Graaf's current research focus covers three areas. Developing methods to achieve magnetic field uniformity throughout the human and animal brain are central to the technological innovation of his research. The problem of magnetic field inhomogeneity is tackled through dynamic shimming and through the use of electrical coil and passive shim element arrays. 13C NMR methods have been pioneered at the Yale MRRC and part of his research is to extend those methods to achieve 3D coverage, higher sensitivity (through 1H detection), and higher specificity (e.g., GABA turnover detection). Finally, the field of 17O NMR appears promising for fast and sensitive mapping of a variety of metabolic fluxes. Research covers the synthesis of 17O-labeled compounds, the development of novel 17O MR methods, and the in vivo detection of 17O label turnover.

Software Download:

• NMRWizard
• Practice data for LCMFitting

Selected Publications