Ongoing research projects
IMMC
Ongoing research projects in iMMC (April 2023)
This a short description of research projects which are presently under progress in iMMC.
Hereunder, you may select one research direction or choose to apply another filter:
List of projects related to: medical imaging
 | A microCT-based approach for high-resolution characterization of biodegradable metallic intravascular stent materials Researcher: Lisa Leyssens Supervisor(s): Greet Kerckhofs, Pascal Jacques The goal of my research project is to assess different potential biodegradable metallic intravascular stent materials using high-resolution 3D microfocus X-ray computed tomography (microCT). In a first step, the optimization of microCT and contrast-enhanced microCT (CECT) for the characterization of the 3D microstructure of different blood vessels is performed (aorta, femoral artery, vena cava) in different species (rat, porcine, human). Then, this technique is applied to study the degradation behaviour of potential materials for biodegradable metallic intravascular stents. Structural properties are investigated. They are critical because they will influence the mechanical and in vivo behaviour of the stents. The materials (in the shape of wires) are screened to analyze the corrosion and surface changes, before and after immersion tests (in vitro part) and before and after implantation in rat arteries to additionally study interactions between the tissue (artery) and the metal (in vivo part). |
 | Ex vivo microfocus computed tomography and contrast-enhanced computed tomography applied to the heart and the heart valves Researcher: Camille Pestiaux Supervisor(s): Greet Kerckhofs The goal of my research project is to characterize in depth the morphological properties of heart and especially heart valves. Their characterization is currently limited to a qualitative description and quantitative information is still highly lacking. The full 3D microstructure of healthy and diseased heart valves is investigated using high-resolution computed tomography (microCT) and contrast-enhanced computer tomography (CECT). |
 | Advanced Characterization of the 3D Morphology of the Bone-Tendon Interface and the Relationship to the Functional Properties Researcher: Arne Maes Supervisor(s): Greet Kerckhofs Within my research project I aim to develop insights in the morphology and the structure-function relationships of the bone-tendon interface. To this end, contrast-enhanced microCT (CE-CT) will be applied for advanced structural characterization. A better understanding of this complex biological tissue is believed to greatly improve the probability of success of regenerative strategies aiming to treat injuries of the bone-tendon interface. |