Project Grant R01MH144278

The National Institute of Mental Health awarded the Regents of the University of Minnesota $726,312 on August 16, 2026, under the Mental Health Research Grants program (CFDA 93.242) to conduct preclinical research on explore-exploit balance as a cross-species index of cognitive flexibility in relation to serious mental health conditions including schizophrenia and mood disorders.

The recipient will use touchscreen cognitive tasks and computational modeling to measure explore versus exploit behavior in mice on a trial-by-trial basis across three aims. In the first aim, the team will test modifications to cognitive tasks to increase similarity between mouse and human decision-making performance. In the second aim, they will examine how current approved pharmacological treatments for depression and schizophrenia impact decision-making, testing whether these treatments push explore-exploit balance in opposing directions. In the third aim, they will employ mesoscale imaging to measure calcium activity of dorsal cortical networks during touchscreen decision-making to test for distinct network activity patterns in explore versus exploit decisions cognate to components of human cortical networks.

Performance of work occurs in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The project period extends from the award date through May 31, 2031. This is a Project Grant, the standard assistance type for NIMH research funding.