Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) awarded $762,566 to the University of Maryland, Baltimore on April 1, 2026, under the Mental Health Research Grants program (CFDA 93.242) to conduct comprehensive multi-omic and synaptic imaging studies of the cerebellum in autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). The project, extending through December 31, 2030, will generate single-nuclei multi-omic profiles examining gene expression and chromatin accessibility across approximately 1.5 million cells from 100 ASD cases and 100 control subjects utilizing post-mortem brain tissue from the University of Maryland Baltimore Brain and Tissue Bank. This research will employ super-resolution confocal imaging to quantify the density, size, and nanostructure of Purkinje cell synapses, the sole output neurons of the cerebellum.

The study will characterize cell type-specific transcriptional and epigenomic changes in cerebellar tissue while focusing on approximately 50 percent of donors with known causal mutations, including multiple cases with tuberous sclerosis complex, Rett syndrome, and fragile X syndrome. This approach will enable identification of shared versus unique features of ASDs across different genetic mutations and provide validation of findings using mouse models, thereby bridging the knowledge gap between mouse models of ASD-related cerebellar dysfunction and the human condition.