Yuan-Chuan Tai, PhD

Senior Vice Chair and Division Director, Radiology Research Facilities

Associate Professor of Radiology

Lab:
Tai Lab

Yuan-Chuan Tai, PhD, is senior vice chair and division director of radiology research facilities for Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology (MIR) at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. With more than two decades at MIR, Tai joined the faculty in 2001, first as an assistant professor. Having previously served as director of a cyclotron facility in Taiwan, he lends his expertise to the vast programming and support of MIR’s facilities — from the Cyclotron Facility to PET/CT in humans and small animals. He also previously led what is now the Precision Radiotheranostics Translation Center (PRTC).

A NIH-funded researcher, Tai leads the Molecular Imaging Physics & Instrumentation Lab, where he develops high-resolution detectors, multi-modal imaging systems, and computational algorithms to improve clinical diagnostic accuracy, enable image-guided radiotheranostics, and translate advanced imaging technologies for biological and agricultural research. He was honored with the 2021 Distinguished Investigator Award by the Academy for Radiology & Biomedical Imaging Research, recognizing his high level of achievement in the field of imaging research.

Research Interests

novel molecular imaging systems, augmented whole-body scanning via magnifying PET (AWSM-PET) technology, compact PET/ultrasound imaging, interactive point-of-care PET/US imaging, Molecular and functional plant imaging, Image-guided radio-theranostics

Link to Publications

Education History

Fellowship

Postdoctoral training, University of California, Los Angeles

Doctorate

University of California, Los Angeles

Graduate

University of Texas at Arlington

Undergraduate

National Tsing Hua University

Associations

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society
Radiological Sciences Executive Committee, Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology

Awards

2021 Distinguished Investigator Award, Academy for Radiology & Biomedical Imaging Research
2005 Prize for the Highest Cited Paper, Physics in Medicine & Biology
1997 Chancellor's Dissertation Year Fellowship, UCLA
1997 Awards for Outstanding Research by International Student, Alpha Association of Phi Beta Kappa Alumni
1996 Norman A. Baily Awards for Outstanding Research in Medical Physics, American Association of Physicists in Medicine