Medical imaging technology plays crucial roles in biomedical research. Many research universities have paid great attention to innovative technology development, basic research, and clinical applications of medical imaging. MED-X Research Institute--Shanghai Mental Health Center Joint Neuroimaging Center aims at establishing clinical and basic imaging research platforms based on the distinct strengths of the engineering schools of SJTU in engineering as well as the strengths of clinical medicine of Shanghai Mental Health Center, an affiliated hospital of SJTU. The Center are developing research teams by both recruiting outstanding imaging experts and cooperating with medical imaging experts from first class international medical imaging research institutes. The Center is striving to become an internationally recognized imaging center for psychiatric and neurological research.
     The Center is lead by Dr. Guo-Yuan Yang, KC Wong Endowed Chair Professor and Associate Dean of MED-X Research Institute, and by Dr. Min Zhao, Vice President of Shanghai Mental Health Center. The major international cooperators of the center include Dr. Allen Song, Professor and Director of the Brain Imaging Center of Duke University School of Medicine, Dr. Timothy Duong, Professor and Director of Yerkes Imaging Center of Emory University, and Dr. Kewei Chen, Professor of Banner Alzheimer's Research Center in Arizona, USA. The researchers of the joint research center will closely collaborate with Dr. Yifeng Xu, Dr. Shifu Xiao, Dr. Chunbo Li, and Dr. Jijun Wang of Shanghai Mental Health Center, Prof. Tiange Zhuang, Prof. Jun Zhao, and Prof. Shanbao Tong of Med-X Research Institute, and Prof. Kemin Chen of Ruijin Hospital.
     The major research directions of the center include: 1) To establish image data analysis platforms for development of functional MRI techniques, post-processing techniques for molecular imaging, and multi-modal data fusion and system algorithms software; 2) to establish a Clinical Imaging Platform to enable the center to become a multi-functional center; and 3) to establish a data-sharing platform to improve data collection, sorting, storage and applications in both experimental and clinical research.