Federal Grant Award Summary

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) awarded Massachusetts General Hospital a K23 Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Grant totaling $197,614 under the Mental Health Research Grants program (CFDA 93.242), effective April 1, 2026 through March 31, 2031. Under this award, Principal Investigator James Luccarelli, MD, DPhil will develop and validate electroencephalographic (EEG)-based digital biomarkers for the detection and monitoring of catatonia, a potentially fatal but treatable neuropsychiatric disorder that remains significantly underdiagnosed in clinical practice. The research will deliver two primary products: (1) a physiologic grading scale for catatonia derived from EEG recordings and clinical examinations in a prospective cohort of 1,400 hospitalized patients with altered mental status, and (2) longitudinal EEG and clinical monitoring data from patients undergoing gold-standard benzodiazepine treatment during the lorazepam challenge test. Machine learning analysis will transform clinical EEG recordings into valid, reliable, and accurate biomarkers to improve diagnostic accuracy and treatment response monitoring.

This career development award simultaneously supports Dr. Luccarelli's advancement as a clinician-scientist through a five-year structured mentorship plan emphasizing prospective clinical research methodology, neurophysiology, data science, responsible conduct of research, and scientific leadership. The integrated training and research program builds upon Dr. Luccarelli's existing clinical expertise in catatonia treatment across pediatric and adult populations and his computational analysis capabilities, positioning him to contribute substantively to closing a critical unmet clinical need in psychiatric diagnosis and treatment monitoring.