UF1MH135991
Cooperative Agreement
Overview
Grant Description
DYNAMIC COGNITIVE PHENOTYPES FOR PREDICTION OF MENTAL HEALTH OUTCOMES IN SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESS - PROJECT SUMMARY THE PROPOSED WORK WILL ENHANCE CLINICAL PREDICTION FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESS (SMI), ACROSS DIAGNOSES, BY INCORPORATION OF NOVEL, SCALABLE COGNITIVE MEASURES THAT CAN BE DELIVERED IN ACUTE INPATIENT SETTINGS (FOR CLINICAL SCREENING), OUTPATIENT SETTINGS (FOR IDENTIFYING TIME PERIODS OF RELATIVE RISK), AND IN ETHNORACIALLY DIVERSE POPULATIONS. OUR OVERALL GOAL IS TO IMPROVE PREDICTION OF MENTAL HEALTH OUTCOMES AND CLINICAL DECISION-MAKING THROUGH THE VALIDATION AND INTEGRATION OF DYNAMIC COGNITIVE PHENOTYPES (NOVEL AND INNOVATIVE MEASURES THAT CAPTURE FLUCTUATIONS IN COGNITION AND BEHAVIOR OVER TIME) IN CLINICAL CARE. FOR AIM 1, WE WILL RECRUIT 1500 PARTICIPANTS ACROSS FIVE INPATIENT PSYCHIATRY UNITS (FOUR ADULT, ONE NONDEMENTIA GERIATRIC) AT MCLEAN HOSPITAL THAT PROVIDE CARE TO INDIVIDUALS WITH THE HIGHEST LEVELS OF CLINICAL SEVERITY. IN THIS GROUP, WE WILL USE A COMBINATION OF BRIEF COGNITIVE ECOLOGICAL MOMENTARY ASSESSMENT (OVER 3 DAYS), ACTIGRAPHY, AND CLINICAL RECORDS TO PROSPECTIVELY PREDICT CLINICAL HEALTH OUTCOMES, INCLUDING CHANGE IN TRANSDIAGNOSTIC SYMPTOMS, CHANGE IN SUICIDALITY, LENGTH OF STAY, AND 12-MONTH HOSPITALIZATION (FROM ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS). DYNAMIC COGNITIVE PHENOTYPES DERIVED FROM TIME SERIES DATA (INCLUDING SLOPE OF COGNITIVE CHANGE, DIURNAL CYCLE, VOLATILITY, COGNITION/SYMPTOM COUPLING) WILL BE USED TO IMPROVE PREDICTION. FOR AIM 2, 250 PARTICIPANTS WILL BE FOLLOWED POST-DISCHARGE TO COLLECT LONGITUDINAL COGNITIVE ECOLOGICAL MOMENTARY ASSESSMENT (EMA) DATA AND BUILD PERSONALIZED MODELS OF CLINICAL RISK. IN AIM 3, WE WILL EVALUATE GENERALIZABILITY AND TRANSFER LEARNING OF CLINICAL PREDICTION MODELS FROM AIMS 1-2, APPLIED TO 250 ETHNORACIALLY DIVERSE PARTICIPANTS WITH ELEVATED PSYCHIATRIC SYMPTOMS RECRUITED FROM BRONX COUNTY, NEW YORK WHO ARE PATIENTS IN THE MONTEFIORE HEALTH SYSTEM. FINALLY, IN AIM 4, WE WILL ADAPT COGNITIVE ASSESSMENT TO ENSURE BROAD USABILITY AMONG CULTURALLY- DIVERSE PARTICIPANTS INCLUDING THOSE WITH LOW ENGLISH LITERACY THROUGH PARTICIPATORY DESIGN SESSIONS AND LARGE- SCALE ONLINE DATA COLLECTION. ACROSS AIMS, THE PROJECT WILL INCORPORATE STRUCTURED AND ETHICAL RETURN OF INDIVIDUAL RESULTS TO PATIENTS, CLINICIANS, AND VOLUNTEERS TO ENHANCE THE POTENTIAL FOR CLINICAL INTEGRATION AND SUPPORT ENGAGEMENT AND TRUST AMONG DIVERSE PERSPECTIVES. THIS PROJECT IS SIGNIFICANT AS IT WILL IMPROVE RISK STRATIFICATION, ALLOWING RESOURCES TO BE DIRECTED TO THOSE MOST IN NEED AND DURING RISK PERIODS WHEN TIMELY INTERVENTION CAN MOST IMPROVE CLINICAL OUTCOMES. SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF THE AIMS WILL CREATE LOW-COST AND SCALABLE COGNITIVE PREDICTION TOOLS THAT CAN BE WIDELY DISSEMINATED (AS PART OF EXISTING DISSEMINATION INFRASTRUCTURE) FOR SCREENING AND PERSONALIZED PREDICTION ACROSS CLINICAL SETTINGS AND IN DIVERSE POPULATIONS.
Funding Goals
THE MISSION OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH (NIMH) IS TO TRANSFORM THE UNDERSTANDING AND TREATMENT OF MENTAL ILLNESSES THROUGH BASIC AND CLINICAL RESEARCH, PAVING THE WAY FOR PREVENTION, RECOVERY, AND CURE. IN MAY 2020, NIMH RELEASED ITS NEW STRATEGIC PLAN FOR RESEARCH. THE NEW STRATEGIC PLAN BUILDS ON THE SUCCESSES OF PREVIOUS NIMH STRATEGIC PLANS BY PROVIDING A FRAMEWORK FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND EXPLORATION, AND ADDRESSING NEW CHALLENGES IN MENTAL HEALTH. THE NEW STRATEGIC PLAN OUTLINES FOUR HIGH-LEVEL GOALS: GOAL 1: DEFINE THE BRAIN MECHANISMS UNDERLYING COMPLEX BEHAVIORS GOAL 2: EXAMINE MENTAL ILLNESS TRAJECTORIES ACROSS THE LIFESPAN GOAL 3: STRIVE FOR PREVENTION AND CURES GOAL 4: STRENGTHEN THE PUBLIC HEALTH IMPACT OF NIMH-SUPPORTED RESEARCH THESE FOUR GOALS FORM A BROAD ROADMAP FOR THE INSTITUTE'S RESEARCH PRIORITIES OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, BEGINNING WITH THE FUNDAMENTAL SCIENCE OF THE BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR, AND EXTENDING THROUGH EVIDENCE-BASED SERVICES THAT IMPROVE PUBLIC HEALTH OUTCOMES. THE INSTITUTE'S OVERALL FUNDING STRATEGY IS TO SUPPORT A BROAD SPECTRUM OF INVESTIGATOR-INITIATED RESEARCH IN FUNDAMENTAL SCIENCE, WITH INCREASING USE OF INSTITUTE-SOLICITED INITIATIVES FOR APPLIED RESEARCH WHERE PUBLIC HEALTH IMPACT IS A SHORT-TERM MEASURE OF SUCCESS. THE NEW STRATEGIC PLAN ALSO ADDRESSES A NUMBER OF CROSS-CUTTING THEMES THAT ARE RELEVANT TO ALL RESEARCH SUPPORTED BY NIMH, THESE THEMES HIGHLIGHT AREAS WHERE NIMH-FUNDED SCIENCE MAY HAVE THE GREATEST IMPACT, BRIDGE GAPS, AND OFFER NOVEL APPROACHES TO ACCELERATE ADVANCES IN MENTAL HEALTH RESEARCH. FOR EXAMPLE, NIMH VALUES A COMPREHENSIVE RESEARCH AGENDA THAT TAKES AN INCLUSIVE APPROACH THAT ENSURES RESEARCH INTERESTS ARE VARIED, MAINTAIN DIVERSE PARTICIPATION AND PARTNERSHIPS, AND ACHIEVE RESEARCH GOALS ACROSS MULTIPLE TIMEFRAMES. THIS INCLUDES DIVERSE METHODOLOGIES, TOOLS, AND MODELS, RESEARCH ADDRESSING COMPLEX BASIC, TRANSLATIONAL, AND APPLIED QUESTIONS, RESEARCH INCLUDING BOTH SEXES AND, AS APPROPRIATE, GENETIC BACKGROUND, AND, PARTICIPANTS FROM DIVERSE RACIAL AND ETHNIC BACKGROUNDS, AND ACROSS GENDER IDENTITIES, GEOGRAPHICAL CONTEXT, SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS, NEUROTYPE, AND AGE OFFERING THE BEST POSSIBLE REPRESENTATION, FOR THE BROADEST NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS WHO MAY ULTIMATELY BENEFIT FROM THESE SCIENTIFIC ADVANCES. TO ACCOMPLISH THE GOALS OUTLINED IN THE NEW STRATEGIC PLAN, NIMH WILL SUPPORT RESEARCH THAT AIMS: TO CHARACTERIZE THE GENOMIC, MOLECULAR, CELLULAR, AND CIRCUIT COMPONENTS CONTRIBUTING TO BRAIN ORGANIZATION AND FUNCTION, TO IDENTIFY THE DEVELOPMENTAL, FUNCTIONAL, AND REGULATORY MECHANISMS RELEVANT TO COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE, AND SOCIAL DOMAINS, ACROSS UNITS OF ANALYSIS, AND, TO GENERATE AND VALIDATE NOVEL TOOLS, TECHNIQUES, AND MEASURES TO QUANTIFY CHANGES IN THE ACTIVITY OF MOLECULES, CELLS, CIRCUITS, AND CONNECTOMES. TO DISCOVER GENE VARIANTS AND OTHER GENOMIC ELEMENTS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF MENTAL ILLNESSES IN DIVERSE POPULATIONS, TO ADVANCE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE COMPLEX ETIOLOGY OF MENTAL ILLNESSES USING MOLECULAR EPIDEMIOLOGIC APPROACHES THAT INCORPORATE INDIVIDUAL GENETIC INFORMATION IN LARGE COHORTS, TO ELUCIDATE HOW HUMAN GENETIC VARIATION AFFECTS THE COORDINATION OF MOLECULAR, CELLULAR, AND PHYSIOLOGICAL NETWORKS SUPPORTING HIGHER-ORDER FUNCTIONS AND EMERGENT PROPERTIES OF NEUROBIOLOGICAL SYSTEMS, AND, TO DEVELOP NOVEL TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES FOR THE ANALYSIS OF LARGE-SCALE GENETIC, MULTI-OMIC DATA AS IT APPLIES TO MENTAL HEALTH. TO UTILIZE CONNECTOMIC APPROACHES TO IDENTIFY BRAIN NETWORKS AND CIRCUIT COMPONENTS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO VARIOUS ASPECTS OF MENTAL FUNCTION AND DYSFUNCTION, TO DETERMINE THROUGH BRAIN-WIDE ANALYSIS HOW CHANGES IN THE PHYSIOLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF MOLECULES, CELLS, AND CIRCUITS CONTRIBUTE TO MENTAL ILLNESSES, TO DEVELOP MOLECULAR, CELLULAR, AND CIRCUIT-LEVEL BIOMARKERS OF IMPAIRED NEURAL FUNCTION IN HUMANS, AND, TO DEVELOP INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES, INCLUDING NEW IMAGING, COMPUTATIONAL, PHARMACOLOGICAL, AND GENETIC TOOLS TO INTERROGATE AND MODULATE CIRCUIT ACTIVITY AND STRUCTURE ALTERED IN MENTAL ILLNESSES. TO ELUCIDATE THE MECHANISMS CONTRIBUTING TO THE TRAJECTORIES OF BRAIN DEVELOPMENT AND BEHAVIOR, AND, TO CHARACTERIZE THE EMERGENCE AND PROGRESSION OF MENTAL ILLNESSES, AND IDENTIFYING SENSITIVE PERIODS FOR OPTIMAL INTERVENTION. TO DETERMINE EARLY RISK AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS, AND RELATED MECHANISMS, TO SERVE AS NOVEL INTERVENTION GROUPS, AND, TO DEVELOP RELIABLE AND ROBUST BIOMARKERS AND ASSESSMENT TOOLS TO PREDICT ILLNESS ONSET, COURSE, AND ACROSS DIVERSE POPULATIONS. TO DEVELOP NOVEL INTERVENTIONS USING A MECHANISM-INFORMED, EXPERIMENTAL THERAPEUTICS APPROACH, AND, TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT MEASUREMENT STRATEGIES TO FACILITATE MECHANISM-BASED INTERVENTION DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING. TO INVESTIGATE PERSONALIZED INTERVENTION STRATEGIES ACROSS DISEASE PROGRESSION AND DEVELOPMENT, AND, TO DEVELOP AND REFINE COMPUTATIONAL APPROACHES AND RESEARCH DESIGNS THAT CAN BE USED TO INFORM AND TEST PERSONALIZED INTERVENTIONS. TO DEVELOP AND TEST APPROACHES FOR ADAPTING, COMBINING, AND SEQUENCING INTERVENTIONS TO ACHIEVE THE GREATEST IMPACT ON THE LIVES AND FUNCTIONING OF PERSONS SEEKING CARE, TO CONDUCT EFFICIENT PRAGMATIC TRIALS THAT EMPLOY NEW TOOLS TO RAPIDLY IDENTIFY, ENGAGE, ASSESS, AND FOLLOW PARTICIPANTS IN THE CONTEXT OF ROUTINE CARE, AND, TO ENHANCE THE PRACTICAL RELEVANCE OF EFFECTIVENESS RESEARCH VIA DEPLOYMENT-FOCUSED, HYBRID, EFFECTIVENESS-IMPLEMENTATION STUDIES. TO EMPLOY ASSESSMENT PLATFORMS WITHIN HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS TO ACCURATELY ASSESS THE DISTRIBUTION AND DETERMINANTS OF MENTAL ILLNESSES AND TO INFORM STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVED SERVICES, TO OPTIMIZE REAL-WORLD DATA COLLECTION SYSTEMS TO IDENTIFY STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVING ACCESS, QUALITY, EFFECTIVENESS, AND CONTINUITY OF MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES, AND, TO COMPARE ALTERNATIVE FINANCING MODELS TO PROMOTE EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT CARE FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH SERIOUS EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCES AND SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESSES. TO STRENGTHEN PARTNERSHIPS WITH KEY STAKEHOLDERS TO DEVELOP AND VALIDATE STRATEGIES FOR IMPLEMENTING, SUSTAINING, AND CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVE EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICES, TO BUILD MODELS TO SCALE-UP EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICES FOR USE IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE PRIMARY CARE, SPECIALTY CARE AND OTHER SETTINGS, AND, TO DEVELOP DECISION-SUPPORT TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGIES THAT INCREASE THE EFFECTIVENESS AND CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT OF MENTAL HEALTH INTERVENTIONS IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE PRIMARY CARE, SPECIALTY CARE, AND OTHER SETTINGS. TO ADAPT, VALIDATE, AND SCALE-UP PROGRAMS CURRENTLY IN USE THAT IMPROVE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR UNDERSERVED POPULATIONS, TO DEVELOP AND VALIDATE SERVICE DELIVERY MODELS THAT PROVIDE EVIDENCE-BASED CARE FOR INDIVIDUALS THROUGHOUT THE COURSE OF MENTAL ILLNESS, TO DEVELOP AND VALIDATE SYSTEMS-LEVEL STRATEGIES USING TECHNOLOGY AND OTHER APPROACHES, TO IDENTIFY, SUPPORT, AND MONITOR THE EFFECTIVENESS OF EVIDENCE-BASED CARE THROUGHOUT THE COURSE OF ILLNESS, AND, TO DEVELOP AND VALIDATE DECISION-MAKING MODELS THAT BRIDGE MENTAL HEALTH, MEDICAL, AND OTHER CARE SETTINGS TO INTEGRATE THE APPROPRIATE CARE FOR PEOPLE WITH SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESSES AND COMORBID MEDICAL CONDITIONS.
Grant Program (CFDA)
Awarding / Funding Agency
Place of Performance
Belmont,
Massachusetts
02478
United States
Geographic Scope
Single Zip Code
Albert Einstein College Of Medicine was awarded
Dynamic Cognitive Phenotypes for Mental Health Prediction in SMI
Cooperative Agreement UF1MH135991
worth $18,270,924
from the National Institute of Mental Health in September 2025 with work to be completed primarily in Belmont Massachusetts United States.
The grant
has a duration of 4 years and
was awarded through assistance program 93.242 Mental Health Research Grants.
The Cooperative Agreement was awarded through grant opportunity Individually Measured Phenotypes to Advance Computational Translation in Mental Health (IMPACT-MH) (U01 Clinical Trial Optional).
Status
(Ongoing)
Last Modified 9/24/25
Period of Performance
9/10/25
Start Date
9/9/29
End Date
Funding Split
$18.3M
Federal Obligation
$0.0
Non-Federal Obligation
$18.3M
Total Obligated
Activity Timeline
Additional Detail
Award ID FAIN
UF1MH135991
SAI Number
UF1MH135991-2454335969
Award ID URI
SAI UNAVAILABLE
Awardee Classifications
Nonprofit With 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other Than An Institution Of Higher Education)
Awarding Office
75N700 NIH National Institute of Mental Health
Funding Office
75N700 NIH National Institute of Mental Health
Awardee UEI
H6N1ZF5HJ2G3
Awardee CAGE
87UV8
Performance District
MA-05
Senators
Edward Markey
Elizabeth Warren
Elizabeth Warren
Modified: 9/24/25