U24NS139927

Brain Connects: An Integrative Connectomics Coordination Center (IC3) - Project Summary

The unique capabilities of mammalian brains arise from their extraordinarily complex network structure, with billions to trillions of synaptic connections among millions to billions of neurons that form thousands of cell types and countless functionally specific circuit pathways.

Unraveling this network structure, the connectome, holds the key to understanding how the brain generates behavior, thoughts, emotion and other functions.

The newly launched Brain Initiative Connectivity Across Scales (BRAIN CONNECTS) program aims to develop cutting-edge, highly scalable technology platforms that enable the generation of unprecedented volumes of data in different and complementary modalities, to create comprehensive brain-wide connectivity maps in mouse, non-human primate (NHP) and human at different resolutions.

These connectivity maps will serve as foundational resources to the community to dramatically accelerate and transform our understanding of brain functions and diseases.

The Integrative Connectomics Coordination Center (IC3) proposed here will work closely with BRAIN CONNECTS data generation teams to ensure the successful realization of the program goals.

The IC3 brings together a team of investigators with extensive experience in various connectomics technologies, large-scale experimental and computational platform development, and consortium management and leadership.

We will coordinate the activities of the BRAIN CONNECTS network across comprehensive centers and specialized technology groups.

Collaborating with data generation groups, we will develop and harmonize three of the four common data processing pipelines in the network, including electron microscopy, fluorescence light microscopy, and barcoded sequencing datasets.

We will organize and conduct rigorous evaluation of the technologies for improved performance and scalability, to enable the next phase of whole-brain scale data generation.

We will develop cloud-based data platforms and analytic tools to facilitate consortium-wide data integration and joint analysis.

We will broadly distribute these tools and products for democratized access and analysis by the research community.

We will establish a BRAIN CONNECTS knowledge base (CONNECTS-KB), along with advanced AI/ML based tools, to incorporate connectivity data into whole brain common coordinate frameworks (CCFs), achieve integration between molecularly defined cell types and connectivity, and create a unified representation of brain connectivity across data modalities and across species.

We will facilitate the demonstration of science and health impacts of the BRAIN CONNECTS program to the broad research community and the general public, through proof-of-concept case studies, online tools allowing external researchers to access and use the integrated data and connectivity maps, and public-facing outreach and education activities.

Allen Institute

(1) TO SUPPORT EXTRAMURAL RESEARCH FUNDED BY THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS AND STROKE (NINDS) INCLUDING: BASIC RESEARCH THAT EXPLORES THE FUNDAMENTAL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF THE BRAIN AND THE NERVOUS SYSTEM; RESEARCH TO UNDERSTAND THE CAUSES AND ORIGINS OF PATHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM WITH THE GOAL OF PREVENTING THESE DISORDERS; RESEARCH ON THE NATURAL COURSE OF NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS; IMPROVED METHODS OF DISEASE PREVENTION; NEW METHODS OF DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT; DRUG DEVELOPMENT; DEVELOPMENT OF NEURAL DEVICES; CLINICAL TRIALS; AND RESEARCH TRAINING IN BASIC, TRANSLATIONAL AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCE. THE INSTITUTE IS THE LARGEST FUNDER OF BASIC NEUROSCIENCE IN THE US AND SUPPORTS RESEARCH ON TOPICS INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: DEVELOPMENT OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM, INCLUDING NEUROGENESIS AND PROGENITOR CELL BIOLOGY, SIGNAL TRANSDUCTION IN DEVELOPMENT AND PLASTICITY, AND PROGRAMMED CELL DEATH; SYNAPSE FORMATION, FUNCTION, AND PLASTICITY; LEARNING AND MEMORY; CHANNELS, TRANSPORTERS, AND PUMPS; CIRCUIT FORMATION AND MODULATION; BEHAVIORAL AND COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE; SENSORIMOTOR LEARNING, INTEGRATION AND EXECUTIVE FUNCTION; NEUROENDOCRINE SYSTEMS; SLEEP AND CIRCADIAN RHYTHMS; AND SENSORY AND MOTOR SYSTEMS. IN ADDITION, THE INSTITUTE SUPPORTS BASIC, TRANSLATIONAL AND CLINICAL STUDIES ON A NUMBER OF DISORDERS OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM INCLUDING (BUT NOT LIMITED TO): STROKE; TRAUMATIC INJURY TO THE BRAIN, SPINAL CORD AND PERIPHERAL NERVOUS SYSTEM; NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDERS; MOVEMENT DISORDERS; BRAIN TUMORS; CONVULSIVE DISORDERS; INFECTIOUS DISORDERS OF THE BRAIN AND NERVOUS SYSTEM; IMMUNE DISORDERS OF THE BRAIN AND NERVOUS SYSTEM, INCLUDING MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS; DISORDERS RELATED TO SLEEP; AND PAIN. PROGRAMMATIC AREAS, WHICH ARE PRIMARILY SUPPORTED BY THE DIVISION OF NEUROSCIENCE, ARE ALSO SUPPORTED BY THE DIVISION OF EXTRAMURAL ACTIVITIES, THE DIVISION OF TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH, THE DIVISION OF CLINICAL RESEARCH, THE OFFICE OF TRAINING AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, THE OFFICE OF PROGRAMS TO ENHANCE THE NEUROSCIENCE WORKFORCE, AND THE OFFICE OF INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITIES. (2) TO EXPAND AND IMPROVE THE SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH (SBIR) PROGRAM; TO INCREASE PRIVATE SECTOR COMMERCIALIZATION OF INNOVATIONS DERIVED FROM FEDERAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT; TO INCREASE SMALL BUSINESS PARTICIPATION IN FEDERAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT; AND TO FOSTER AND ENCOURAGE PARTICIPATION OF SOCIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS AND WOMEN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS IN TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION. TO UTILIZE THE SMALL BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER (STTR) PROGRAM; TO STIMULATE AND FOSTER SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION THROUGH COOPERATIVE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CARRIED OUT BETWEEN SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS AND RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS; TO FOSTER TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER BETWEEN SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS AND RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS; TO INCREASE PRIVATE SECTOR COMMERCIALIZATION OF INNOVATIONS DERIVED FROM FEDERAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT; AND TO FOSTER AND ENCOURAGE PARTICIPATION OF SOCIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS AND WOMEN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS IN TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION.

93.853 - Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NNDS) [HHS - NIH]

Seattle, Washington 981094307 United States

Single Zip Code

BRAIN Initiative Connectivity across Scales Data Coordinating Center (BRAIN CONNECTS DCC) (U24 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) (RFA-NS-24-028)

Amendment Since initial award the total obligations have increased 90% from $2,500,000 to $4,748,241.