Cardiovascular Research Core (CVRC), an RRC core facility at UIC, is affiliated with the Cardiovascular Research Center (CCVR) and the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (OVCR). We develop and functionally assess preclinical models of cardiovascular, pulmonary vascular and other diseases, assist internal/external investigators in generating high-quality and reproducible data using preclinical models of human disease and facilitate testing of drug efficacy and toxicity as well as medical devices using preclinical models and imaging systems.