Duke Institute for Brain Sciences

2012 Research Incubator Awards Announced

June 08, 2012

Nine interdisciplinary research teams at Duke have been selected to receive the 2012-2013 Duke Institute for Brain Sciences' (DIBS) Research Incubator Awards (four new awards and five continuation awards).

The Research Incubator Awards program is designed to encourage innovative approaches to problems of brain function that transcend the boundaries of traditional disciplines. The award provides seed funding for collaborative research projects that will lead to a better understanding of brain function and translate into innovative solutions for health and society.

Project Summaries

2012-2013 New Awards:

• Characterization, Mechanisms, and Modeling of Static Magnetic Field Effects on Neuronal Excitability

Investigators: David Beratan (Chemistry); Warren Grill (Biomedical Engineering); Wolfgang Liedtke (Neurology); Thomas McIntosh (Cell Biology); Scott Moore (Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences); Angel Peterchev (Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences); and Sri Raghavachari (Neurobiology)

• Using TMS to Enhance Frontal and Memory Functions in Older Adults: Cross-Hemispheric Connectivity and Persistence of Enhancement

Investigators: Roberto Cabeza (Psychology & Neuroscience); Sarah H. Lisanby (Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences); and Bruce Luber (Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences)

• Epigenomic Regulation of Neuronal Differentiation

Investigators: Greg Crawford (Pediatrics); Uwe Ohler (Biostatistics & Bioinformatics); and Anne West (Neurobiology)

• The Neurobiology of Hibernation: Neurophysiologic, Neuroendocrinologic, and Genetic Mechanisms

Investigators: Peter Klopfer (Biology and Evolutionary Anthropology); Andrew Krystal (Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences); Richard Moon (Anesthesiology); Greg Wray (Biology and Evolutionary Biology); and Anne Yoder (Biology)

2012-2013 Continuation Awards:

• Non-Invasive Monitoring and Diagnosis of Ocular Neurodegenerative Diseases Using Cell Density Measurement via Angle-Resolved Low Coherence Interferometry

Investigators: Vadim Arshavsky (Ophthalmology); Sina Farsiu (Ophthalmology); and Adam Wax (Biomedical Engineering)

• Cumulative Maternal Stressor Effects on Enduring Neural and Developmental Outcomes in Offspring

Investigators: Richard Auten (Pediatrics-Neonatology); Staci Bilbo (Psychology & Neuroscience); and Marie Lynn Miranda (Enviornmental Sciences and Policy)

• Characterization of Brain Circuit Changes Underlying Chronic Social Defeat Stress

• Identifying the genetic basis for uniquely human features of cortical development

Investigators: Blanche Capel (Cell Biology); Debra Silver (Molecular Genetics and Microbiology); and Gregory Wray (Biology)

Investigators: Herbert Covington (Psychology & Neuroscience) and Kafui Dzirasa (Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences)

• Transsynaptic labeling and functional characterization of sensorimotor circuits in the mouse trigeminal system

Investigators: Wolfgang Liedtke (Neurology); and Fan Wang (Cell Biology)