Cristina Ramona Cudalbu Moldovan

EPFL CIBM-PCI
CH F0 582 (Bâtiment CH)
Station 6
1015 Lausanne

EPFL CIBM-PCI
CH F0 582 (Bâtiment CH)
Station 6
1015 Lausanne

EPFL CIBM-PCI
CH F0 582 (Bâtiment CH)
Station 6
1015 Lausanne

Expertise

  •    In vivo proton, phosphorus, carbon and nitrogen MR Spectroscopy
  •    Chronic Hepatic Encephalopathy, Hyperammonemia - https://actu.epfl.ch/news/when-liver-disease-affects-the-brain/
  •    Brain metabolites quantification and macromolecules
  •    In vivo proton Spectroscopic Imaging
  •    Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Diffusion Weighted Imaging
  •    Brain tumors
  •    Dynamic nuclear polarization

Scholar google

Current work

Development: implement/validate new acquisition and quantification techniques for in vivo proton, phosphorous, carbon, nitrogen MRS
  •     Implement new acquisition techniques for fast spectroscopic imaging and diffusion spectroscopy
  •     Implement new techniques for brain macromolecules quantification
Animal models:
       - mechanistic understanding of chronological event involved in chronic hepatic encephalopathy and targeted treatments using a multi-modal approach
  •    Brain tumors
  •    Creatine deficiencies, etc

PubMed

Cristina Cudalbu obtained her Bachelors of Science degree in Medical Physics in 2002 and Masters of Science degree in Biophysics and Medical Physics in 2003, both from University Babes-Bolyai, Cluj-Napoca, Romania. In 2006 she obtained her PhD degree in Localized Proton MRS and time domain quantification of cerebral metabolites at 7T and 4.7T at University Lyon 1, RMN Laboratory, Villeurbanne, France.In 2007, she joined, as a Scientist, the Laboratory for Functional and Metabolic Imaging at EPFL, where she implemented new acquisition and quantification techniques for in vivo nitrogen, proton and carbon MRS for preclinical studies. Starting 2012, Cristina Cudalbu was appointed as Research Staff Scientist and 9.4T MRI Operational Manager at Centre d'Imagerie Biomédicale (CIBM) at EPFL. In 2021, Cristina Cudalbu was promoted to Research and Teaching Associate in the Faculty of Basic Sciences at EPFL and is leading the MRS4Brain Group. In 2023 Cristina Cudalbu was promoted to Deputy Head at CIBM MRI EPFL AIT and in 2024 to Maître d'enseignement et de recherche (MER) at School of Basic Sciences at EPFL. In 2025 she became Head of CIBM PCI EPFL.
Over the last decade, she has been developing new research lines at CIBM which are oriented towards new acquisition and quantification techniques for in vivo proton, phosphorous, carbon, nitrogen MRS and fast MRSI, diffusion weighted spectroscopy and brain macromolecules quantification. She is now applying these developments on chronic hepatic encephalopathy, a research area that she developed at CIBM (https://actu.epfl.ch/news/when-liver-disease-affects-the-brain/), and on different collaborative projects with researchers from the five partner institutions of CIBM.

Education

PhD

| RMN Laboratory MIB

2003 – 2006 University Claude-Bernard Lyon 1, France

Master of Science

| Biophysics and Medical Physics

2002 – 2003 University Babes-Bolyai, Cluj Napoca, Romania

Professionals experiences

Head

MER

Deputy

Research and Teaching Associate

Senior Research Staff Scientist and 9.4T MRI Operational Manager

Postdoctoral researcher

Selected publications

Effect of manganese chloride on the neurochemical profile of the rat hypothalamus.

Just N, Cudalbu C, Lei H, Gruetter R.
Published in J Cereb Blood Flow Metab. 2011 Dec;31(12):2324-33. in

Single spin-echo T2 relaxation times of cerebral metabolites at 14.1 T in the in vivo rat brain.

Xin L, Gambarota G, Cudalbu C, Mlyn�rik V, Gruetter R.
Published in MAGMA. 2013 Dec;26(6):549-54. in

Quantitation for in vivo and ex vivo NMR Spectroscopy

H. Rabeson, H. Ratiney, F. Fauvelle, C. Cudalbu, S. Cavassila, A. Bernard, P. Giraudon, D. van Ormondt, D. Graveron-Demilly.
Published in Journal of Optoelectronics and Advanced Materials, 2007, 9 (3): 505-511. in

Hyperpolarized lithium-6 as a sensor of nanomolar contrast agents

RB. van Heeswijk, K Uffmann, A Comment, F Kurdzesau, C Perazzolo, C Cudalbu, S Jannin, JA. Konter, P Hautle, B van den Brandt, G Navon, JJ. van der Klink and R Gruetter.
Published in Magn Reson Med. 2009 Jun;61(6):1489-93 in

Quantification of the neurochemical profile using simulated macromolecule resonances at 3 T.

Schaller B, Xin L, Cudalbu C, Gruetter R.
Published in NMR Biomed. 2013 May;26(5):593-9. in

1H NMR spectroscopy of rat brain in vivo at 14.1 Tesla: Improvements in quantification of the neurochemical profile

V Mlynarik, C Cudalbu, L Xin, R Gruetter.
Published in J Magn Reson. 2008 Oct;194(2):163-8 in

In vivo metabolic profiling of glioma-initiating cells using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy at 14.1 Tesla

Vladim�r Mlyn�rik, Cristina Cudalbu, Virginie Cl�ment, Denis Marino, Ivan Radovanovic, Rolf Gruetter
Published in NMR Biomed. 2012 Apr;25(4):506-13. in

Handling macromolecule signals in the quantification of the neurochemical profile

C Cudalbu, V. Mlyn�rik, R. Gruetter
Published in J Alzheimers Dis. 2012;31 Suppl 3:S101-15. Review. in

Marker-independent identification of glioma-initiating cells

Cl�ment V, Marino D, Cudalbu C, Hamou MF, Mlynarik V, de Tribolet N, Dietrich PY, Gruetter R, Hegi ME, Radovanovic I.
Published in Nat Methods, 2010 Mar;7(3):224-8. in

Comparison of two approaches to model the macromolecule spectrum for the quantification of short TE 1H MRS spectra.

C. Cudalbu, V Mlynarik, L Xin, R Gruetter.
Published in Meas. Sci. Technol. 20:104034 (2009) in

In vivo brain macromolecule signals in healthy and glioblastoma mouse models: 1 H magnetic resonance spectroscopy, post-processing and metabolite quantification at 14.1 T.

Craveiro M, Cl�ment-Schatlo V, Marino D, Gruetter R, Cudalbu C.
Published in J Neurochem. 2014 Feb 7. doi: 10.1111/jnc.12673. [Epub ahead of print] in

Rat brain metabolite relaxation time estimates using Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy at two different field strengths

C. Cudalbu, A. Rengle, O. Beuf, S. Cavassila.
Published in C.R. Chimie, Volume 11, Issues 4-5, April-May 2008, Pages 442-447 in

Influence of Measured and Simulated Basis-Sets on the Metabolite Concentration Estimates

C. Cudalbu, S. Cavassila, H. Rabeson, D. van Ormondt, D. Graveron-Demilly.
Published in NMR Biomed, 2008, 21: 627-636. in

Cerebral Glutamine metabolism under hyperamonemia determined in vivo by localized 1H and 15N NMR spectroscopy

C. Cudalbu, B. Lanz, J.M.N. Duarte, FD Morgenthaler, Y. Pilloud, V. Mlyn�rik and R. Gruetter.
Published in J Cereb Blood Flow Metab. 2012 Apr;32(4):696-708 in

Brain metabolite concentration estimates using MRS in a chronic model of temporal lobe epilepsy

C. Cudalbu, A. Montavont, P. Ryvlin, S. Cavassila.
Published in CR Chimie, Volume 11, Issues 4-5, April-May 2008, Pages 434-441. in

In vivo short echo time localized 1H MRS of the rat brain at 7T: influence of two strategies of background-accommodation on the metabolite concentration estimation using QUEST

C. Cudalbu, O. Beuf, S. Cavassilla.
Published in Journal of VLSI Signal Processing Systems, 55 (1-3) , pp. 25-34, DOI: 10.1007/s11265-008-0187-5. in

Diffusion-weighted spectroscopy: a novel approach to determine macromolecule resonances in short-echo time 1H-MRS

Kunz N, Cudalbu C, Mlynarik V, H�ppi PS, Sizonenko SV, Gruetter R.
Published in Magn Reson Med. 2010 Oct;64(4):939-46. in

Clinical proton MR spectroscopy in central nervous system disorders.

Oz G, Alger JR, Barker PB, Bartha R, Bizzi A, Boesch C, Bolan PJ, Brindle KM, Cudalbu C, Din�er A, Dydak U, Emir UE, Frahm J, Gonz�lez RG, Gruber S, Gruetter R, Gupta RK, Heerschap A, Henning A, Hetherington HP, Howe FA, H�ppi PS, Hurd RE, Kantarci K, Klomp DW, Kreis R, Kruiskamp MJ, Leach MO, Lin AP, Luijten PR, Marja?ska M, Maudsley AA, Meyerhoff DJ, Mountford CE, Nelson SJ, Pamir MN, Pan JW, Peet AC, Poptani H, Posse S, Pouwels PJ, Ratai EM, Ross BD, Scheenen TW, Schuster C, Smith IC, Soher BJ, Tk�? I, Vigneron DB, Kauppinen RA; MRS Consensus Group.
Published in Radiology. 2014 Mar;270(3):658-79. doi: 10.1148/radiol.13130531. in

Ammonia toxicity to the brain

Braissant O, McLin VA, Cudalbu C.
Published in J Inherit Metab Dis. 2013 Jul;36(4):595-612 in

Dose distribution in the irradiation of medulloblastoma with two adjacent fields,

C Cudalbu, A Stan, O. Cozar.
Published in Studia UBB, Physica, 2003, 48(2), pp 3-11 in

Which prior knowledge? Quantification of in vivo brain (13) C MR spectra following (13) C glucose infusion using AMARES.

Lanz B, Duarte JM, Kunz N, Mlyn�rik V, Gruetter R, Cudalbu C.
Published in Magn Reson Med. 2013 Jun;69(6):1512-22. in

Estimation of metabolite concentrations of healthy mouse brain by Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy at 7 Tesla

C. Cudalbu, S. Cavassila, H. Ratiney, D. Grenier, A. Briguet, D. Graveron-Demilly.
Published in C. R. Chimie, 9, 2006, pp 534-538. in

The C57BL/6J mouse exhibits sporadic congenital portosystemic shunts.

Cudalbu C, McLin VA, Lei H, Duarte JM, Rougemont AL, Oldani G, Terraz S, Toso C, Gruetter R
Published in PLoS One. 2013 Jul 23;8(7):e69782. in

Feasibility of in vivo(15)N MRS detection of hyperpolarized (15)N labeled choline in rats

Cudalbu C, Comment A, Kurdzesau F, van Heeswijk RB, Uffmann K, Jannin S, Denisov V, Kirik D, Gruetter R.
Published in Phys Chem Chem Phys. 2010 Jun 14;12(22):5818-23 in

Proton and Phosphorus Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy of a Mouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease.

Mlyn�rik V, Cacquevel M, Sun-Reimer L, Janssens S, Cudalbu C, Lei H, Schneider BL, Aebischer P, Gruetter R.
Published in J Alzheimers Dis. 2012;31 Suppl 3:S87-99. in

Comparison of T1 relaxation times of the neurochemical profile in rat brain at 9.4T and 14.1T

C. Cudalbu, V Mlynarik, L Xin, R Gruetter.
Published in Magn Reson Med. 2009 Oct;62(4):862-7 in

Infoscience

Research

Grants

  • 2022-2026 - PI in the Swiss National Science Foundation, n° 205321L_207935,
    "Developments of innovative fast acquisition and metabolic modelling strategies for clinical and preclinical deuterium MR imaging in the brain at ultra-high field", Co-PI: B Lanz (CIBM) B Strasser (University of Vienna)
  • 2022 - PI in the Swiss National Science Foundation,
    n° 213184, "The International Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Workshop «MRS 2022: Overcoming the Barriers to Clinical Use»", Co-PI: B Alves, A Klauser, R Kreis, H Lajous, B Lanz, J Mosso, K Pierzchala, D Simicic, D Van de Ville, D Wenz, L Xin
  • 2021-2025 - PI in the Swiss National Science Foundation, n° 310030_201218
    "Enhanced MR Spectroscopic mapping of brain regional changes in type C hepatic encephalopathy of juvenile rats to develop novel combinatorial treatments," Co-PI: O Braissant (CHUV) V McLin (HUG)
  • 2019-2021 - Co-applicant in the Innosuisse - Suisse Innovation Agency application "Pearl injectable implants, a solution for the reconstruction of ultra-large volumes of soft tissues post-injury"
  • 2018-2022 - Vice-coordinator in the H2020-MSCA-ITN-2018 application " INtegrating Magnetic Resonance SPectroscopy and Multimodal Imaging for Research and Education in MEDicine" (INSPiRE-MED, 813120)
  • 2017-2021: Swiss National Science Foundation; grant n° 31003A-175778/1 to Braissant&Cudalbu. «Cerebral creatine deficiency syndromes: New in vivo AAV approaches to treat SLC6A8 deficiency.»
  • 2017-2021: Swiss National Science Foundation; grant n° 310030_173222/1 to Cudalbu&Braissant&McLin. «Translational Non-Invasive Metabolic Studies towards Novel Treatments of Chronic Hepatic Encephalopathy in Developing Brain, from 3D Organotypic Brain Cell Cultures to the In vivo Rat and Human Brain.»
  • 2017-2018: Co-applicant in the Swiss Cancer League application «Characterizing invasiveness of patient derived brain tumor transplants in mice by gene expression profiling in association with metabolite profiles obtained by magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). A pilot project», (PI Monika Hegi)
  • 2014-2016: Co-applicant in the Swiss Bridge Foundation application "Towards patient-specific treatments in glioblastoma: Comparison and validation of high-resolution imaging and molecular profiles of human glioblastoma and respective paired orthotopic xenografts in the mouse" (PI Andreas Hottinger)
  • 2014: PI for the Industrial grant VSL Pharmaceuticals Inc.
  • 2013-2017: Co-applicant in FP7-PEOPLE Marie Curie Initial Training Network project "Transforming Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy into a Clinical Tool" (TRANSACT)

Teaching & PhD

PhD Students

Juliette Beaubis

Past EPFL PhD Students as codirector

Veronika Rackayová, Dunja Simicic, Jessie Mosso, Brayan Alves

Courses

CIBM translational MR neuroimaging & spectroscopy

PHYS-770

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and spectroscopy (MRS) will be addressed in detail, along with experimental design, data gathering and processing on MRS, structural and functional MRI in humans and rodents, and hands-on experience with MRI scanners.

MRI Practicals on CIBM preclinical imaging systems

PHYS-473

The goal of this course is to teach students how to perform basic MRI and MRS experiments in-vivo and ex-vivo directly on preclinical horizontal ultra-high field MRI systems.