PROJECT SUMMARY / ABSTRACT
To understand the highly integrated cognitive processes in the mammalian brain, and the neuronal basis of com-
plex and ethologically relevant behavior, one requires fast, depth-penetrating and volumetric imaging techniques
that are compatible with free behavior such as du
Funded Awards
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) BRAIN Initiative funds a wide-variety of research: toolmakers, trainees, individual labs testing new hypotheses, and large, team-based efforts aiming to catalyze neuroscience inquiry forward. Explore NIH BRAIN Initiative funded awards listed below. Click on the project title to learn more about it within NIH RePORTER.
To see more NIH-funded awards and associated publications, please visit the NIH RePORTER.
Title
Investigator(s)
Institution
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunity #
Project #
TitleLensless, high-speed and multi-region volumetric Ca2+ imaging of up to 1cm2 brain surface across model animals
Investigator
Jacob T. Robinson, Alipasha Vaziri
Institute
rockefeller university
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
TitleLeveraging ethical dissension among capacity, beneficence and justice in clinical trials of neurotherapeutics in the severely disabled: lessons from schizophrenia
Investigator
Rachel A Davis, Judith Morse Gault, Elyn R. Saks
Institute
university of colorado denver
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Project Summary/Abstract
Ethical concerns raised from both current and historically controversial psychosurgeries are driving disparities in
accessibility to emerging BRAIN Initiative technology for those with severe, disabling, chronic mental illness like
individuals with treatment-refractory schiz
TitleMapping cerebellar granule cell function with novel genetic and optical tools
Investigator
Gerard Joey Broussard
Institute
princeton university
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Project Summary/Abstract
Recent evidence from multiple laboratories in both human and animal models supports a role for the granule cell (GrC)
pathway of the cerebellum in representing a wide range of sensory, motor, and internal information.
TitleMapping the neuronal circuitry underlying indirect striatal to hypothalamicconnectivity and its role in feeding
Investigator
Miriam E Bocarsly
Institute
national institute on alcohol abuse and alcoholism
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Food consumption is fundamental to species survival and understanding the neuronal circuitry underlying feeding behaviors is of the utmost importance.
TitleMassively Multiplexed Gold Microprobe Arrays for Whole-Mouse-Brain Recording
Investigator
Hui Fang, Ross M Walker
Institute
northeastern university
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Abstract
Understanding brain function requires the ability to record simultaneously from thousands or tens-of-
thousands of neurons contributing to the dynamic activity in a neural circuit.
TitleMechanism underlying Nerve Conduction Block by High Frequency (kHz) Biphasic Stimulation
Investigator
Changfeng Tai
Institute
university of pittsburgh at pittsburgh
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Project Summary
Based on the gate-control theory of pain, traditional spinal cord stimulation (SCS) to treat chronic back/leg pain
utilizes 40-60 Hz stimulation that activates spinal dorsal columns to elicit paresthesia over a patient’s painful
region.
TitleMechanisms of Active Sensing in Drosophila
Investigator
Marie Suver
Institute
new york university school of medicine
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
The goal of this project is to study the cellular basis of active sensation. A crucial function of all nervous systems is to distinguish between sensory stimuli originating from the external world and that generated by our own movements.
TitleMechanisms underlying large-scale coordination of cortical activity during perceptual decisions
Investigator
Lucas Pinto
Institute
princeton university
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
It has become increasingly clear that both spontaneous and trained behaviors engage activity throughout the cortex. However, at least in the case of perceptual decisions, task complexity critically modulates the underlying large- and mesoscale cortical dynamics.
TitleMotion Sequencing for All: pipelining, distribution and training to enable broad adoption of a next-generation platform for behavioral and neurobehavioral analysis
Investigator
Sandeep R Datta
Institute
harvard medical school
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Understanding the function of the nervous system requires a sophisticated understanding of its main
output, behavior.
TitleMultielectrode Arrays for Neurotransmitter Detection with Fast Scan Cyclic Voltammetry
Investigator
Alexandros George Zestos
Institute
microprobes for life science, inc.
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Project Summary/Abstract
The brain is by far the most complex and heterogeneous organ in the human body. For years, there has
been a growing and unmet need to develop multielectrode arrays for neurotransmitter sensing in
multiple brain regions simultaneously.
TitleMultimodal Stainless Steel Neural Interfaces for Large-scale Recording and Modulation in Large Animals
Investigator
Maysamreza Chamanzar
Institute
carnegie-mellon university
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Project Summary
In this proposal a course of research is proposed to design and implement high-density multimodal (electrical
and optical) neural probes on stainless steel for robust, reliable and large-scale recording from thousands of
neurons in large animal (primate) brains.
TitleNeural signatures of learning complex environments in the amygdala-prefrontal network
Investigator
David Barack
Institute
columbia university health sciences
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
The ability to learn and think about complex situations is central to a range of human cognitive
functions, including navigation, reasoning, and decision making.
TitleNeuro-glio-vascular interactions in vivo probed with optical imaging
Investigator
Congwu Du, Yingtian Pan
Institute
state university new york stony brook
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
This application, "Neuro-glio-vascular interactions in vivo probed with optical imaging", will address the
broad challenge of the BRAIN Initiative (Innovative Neurotechnologies) and the targeted challenge
(tools to target, identify and characterize non-neuronal cells in the brain).
TitleNeuromodulation approaches for restoring dexterous control following cortical stroke.
Investigator
Preeya Khanna
Institute
university of california, san francisco
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
PROJECT SUMMARY
Stroke-causing illness, disability, and early death is set to double worldwide within the next 15 years.
Despite physical therapy, about 50% of stroke survivors have impaired hand function, which strongly impacts
activities of daily living and independence; novel treatment methods a
TitleNeuropixelsUltra: Dense arrays for stable, unbiased, and cell type-specific electrical imaging
Investigator
Timothy D Harris, Shawn R. Olsen, Nicholas Steinmetz
Institute
university of washington
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Summary/Abstract
Understanding the neural mechanisms underpinning cognition and behavior requires the
ability to measure the dynamics and interactions of populations of neurons spread across
many brain regions.
TitleNew approaches for single cell tagging, editing and profiling of glial cells in vivo
Investigator
Weizhe Hong
Institute
university of california los angeles
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Summary
The mammalian central nervous system supports a multitude of cognitive and behavioral functions through
coordinated action of different neural circuits that are composed of diverse sets of differentiated cell types,
including both neurons and non-neuronal cells.
TitleNext generation all-optical toolkits for functional analysis of neuropeptide dynamics in neural circuits
Investigator
Matthew Ryan Banghart, Bernardo L Sabatini, Lin Tian
Institute
university of california, san diego
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Project summary
The mammalian brain is remarkably dynamic and can quickly adjust its functional state in response to changes
in the environment. For example, when a salient event occurs, the brain enters a mode that enhances memory
formation.
TitleNext Generation Cell-Type-Specific Viral Vectors for Non-Neuronal Brain Cell Types
Investigator
Michael Eldon Greenberg
Institute
harvard medical school
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Project Summary:
While traditionally conceived as passive support elements for neuronal networks, non-neuronal brain cells are
now appreciated as dynamic integral components of central nervous system (CNS) circuitry.
TitleNext-generation high-resolution diffusion MRI resolving cortical columns and layers in vivo
Investigator
Allen W Song, Trong-Kha Truong
Institute
duke university
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
Abstract
In response to the NIH RFA-EB-17-003 on “Proof of Concept Development of Early Stage Next Generation
Human Brain Imaging”, we propose a two-year plan to develop the much needed hardware and software
solutions for ultrahigh resolution diffusion MRI to delineate cortical columns and layers in
TitleNon-Invasive Nanoparticle Platform for Tool Delivery to the Brain
Investigator
Ute H Hochgeschwender, Julien Rossignol, Ajit Sharma
Institute
central michigan university
Fiscal Year
Funding Opportunities Number
Project Number
PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
The goal of this proposal is to assess the feasibility of a non-invasive nanoparticle platform for tool delivery to
the brain.