Purpose To develop an autonomous, in‐bore, MR‐compatible cryostat cooled with liquid nitrogen that provides full‐day operation, and to demonstrate that the theoretical signal‐to‐noise benefit can be achieved for 13C imaging at 3 T (32.13 MHz). Methods The cryogenic setup uses a vacuum‐insulated fiberglass cryostat, which indirectly cools a cold finger where the RF coil is attached. The cryostat was evacuated before use and had a reservoir of liquid nitrogen for full‐day operation. A 30 × 40 mm2 copper coil was mounted inside the cryostat with a 3‐mm distance to the sample. Two examples of in vivo experiments of rat brain metabolism after a hyperpolarized [1‐13C]pyruvate injection are reported. Results A coil Q‐factor ratio of Q88K/Q290K = 550/280 was obtained, and the theoretical SNR enhancement was verified with MR measurements. We achieved a coil temperature of 88 K and a preamplifier temperature of 77 K. A 2‐fold overall SNR enhancement was achieved, compared with the best case at room temperature. The thermal performance of the coil was adequate for in vivo experiments, with an autonomy of 5 hours consuming 6 L of LN2, extendable to over 12 hours by LN2 refilling. Conclusion Cryogenic surface coils can be highly beneficial for 13C imaging, provided that the coil‐to‐sample distance remains short. An autonomous, in‐bore cryostat was developed that achieved the theoretical improvement in SNR.

To control community transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) during the 2020 global pandemic, most countries implemented strategies based on direct human testing, face covering, and surface disinfection.Under the assumption that the main route of transmission includes aerosols and respiratory droplets, efforts to detect SARS-CoV-2 in fomites have focused on locations suspected of high prevalence (e.g., hospital wards, cruise ships, and mass transportation systems). To investigate the presence of SARS-CoV-2 on surfaces in the urban environment that are rarely cleaned and seldomly disinfected, 350 citizens were enlisted from the greater San Diego County. In total, these citizen scientists collected 4,080 samples. An online platform was developed to monitor sampling kit delivery and pickup, as well as to collect sample data. The sampling kits were mostly built from supplies available in pandemic-stressed stores. Samples were processed using reagents that were easy to access despite the recurrent supply shortage. The methods used were highly sensitive and resistant to inhibitors that are commonly present in environmental samples. The proposed experimental design and processing methods were successful at engaging numerous citizen scientists who effectively gathered samples from diverse surface areas. The workflow and methods described here are relevant to survey the urban environment for other viruses, which are of public health concern and pose a threat for future pandemics.

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