Project Grant R21MH134678
- The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) was awarded a $415,876 Project Grant under the Trans-NIH Research Support program (CFDA 93.310) by the National Institutes of Health Office of the Director, with a performance period from August 1, 2024 to July 31, 2026. The purpose of this grant is to optimize and utilize a novel five-dimensional (5D) magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) technique called "ROSE-JRESI" and three-dimensional myelin water imaging (MWI) to study...
- This $823,691 Project Grant award was provided by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under the Trans-NIH Research Support program (CFDA 93.310) to investigate the role of immune checkpoints in the central nervous system (CNS) of people living with HIV (PLWH) and their association with HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND). The research aims to determine the profiles and biological functions of soluble immune checkpoints (sICPs) in the CNS of PLWH and a simian immunodeficiency...
- Federal Grant Award Summary The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) awarded Massachusetts General Hospital a $2.69 million Project Grant under the Mental Health Research Grants program (CFDA 93.242) effective September 1, 2025, through May 31, 2030. This research initiative utilizes advanced brain ultrasound imaging technologies—including high-resolution microvascular imaging (MVI), shear-wave elastography, and quantitative texture analysis (radiomics)—to identify early neurodevelopmental...
- Federal Grant Award Summary The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) awarded $698,390 to the Regents of the University of California at Riverside under the Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders program (CFDA 93.853) effective August 1, 2025, with completion anticipated by June 30, 2030. This Project Grant supports research into harnessing innate immune responses to control the neuroinflammatory human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)...
- Federal Grant Award Summary The National Institute on Drug Abuse awarded a $1.825 million Project Grant to Texas Biomedical Research Institute (doing business as Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) to conduct research on HIV/AIDS reservoir reduction in the central nervous system. Awarded on September 1, 2025, with a completion date of May 31, 2030, the project focuses on developing and optimizing focused...
- Federal Project Grant Award Summary The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke awarded The Regents of the University of Colorado a $184,506 project grant effective August 7, 2025, through July 31, 2027, under the Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders (CFDA 93.853) program. The research project investigates the dual roles of amyloid beta (Aβ) in central nervous system neuropathogenesis of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND),...
- This Project Grant award from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), under the Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders (CFDA 93.853) program, supports research to investigate the role of the CCL2/CCR2 signaling pathway in modulating HIV-associated ischemic stroke severity and recovery. The $422,125 award, effective from September 18, 2024 to August 31, 2026, will be conducted by the University of Miami. The research aims to...
- Federal Grant Award Summary The Scintillon Institute received a $1,025,015 Project Grant award from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) under the Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders (CFDA 93.853) program, effective August 11, 2025, with completion targeted for July 31, 2027. The award funds development of a next-generation preclinical model of NeuroHIV that integrates neuro-immune-vascular system interactions to advance...
- Summary The University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) received a $2.31 million Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), effective April 15, 2025 through January 31, 2030. The award funds research investigating the molecular mechanisms by which HIV Tat protein, cocaine, and combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) interact to activate the NLRP3 inflammasome signaling pathway, leading to microglial...
- Federal Grant Award Summary Rush University Medical Center received a $1.52M project grant from the National Institute of Mental Health under the Mental Health Research Grants program (CFDA 93.242), awarded April 1, 2026, with a completion date of March 31, 2028. The grant funds research utilizing a human-mouse chimera model to investigate the dynamics of HIV infection in the brain and its pathophysiological mechanisms. Specifically, the research examines how HIV-infected cells cross the...
BRAIN METABOLIC IMAGING BIOMARKERS OF HIV-1 INFECTION DURING ART - PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT OUR GOAL IS TO DEPLOY NOVEL MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING (MRI) TECHNIQUES TO NONINVASIVELY TRACK ANTIRETROVIRAL DRUGS (ARVS) IN THE CNS AND MEASURE VIRUS-ASSOCIATED METABOLITES LINKED TO NEUROPATHOLOGICAL AND NEUROPROTECTIVE OUTCOMES RESULTING FROM ARVS. THE MRI TECHNIQUES EMPLOY A NOVEL CONTRAST COINED AS "CHEMICAL EXCHANGE SATURATION TRANSFER (CEST)". CEST IS SEEN WHEN AN EXCHANGEABLE PROTON OF A BIOMOLECULE IS MAGNETICALLY SATURATED AND TRANSFERRED TO WATER BY CHEMICAL EXCHANGE CAUSING SIGNAL REDUCTION. CONTINUOUS EXCHANGE WITH BULK WATER PROTONS LEADING TO AMPLIFIED SIGNAL REDUCTION ENABLES THE DETECTION OF THE SIGNATURE BIOMOLECULE. CEST-BASED MRI PROVIDES SPECIFIC DETECTION OF METABOLITES AND GREATER SENSITIVITY AND SPATIAL RESOLUTION COMPARED TO MAGNETIC RESONANCE SPECTROSCOPY (MRS). INDEED, OUR PRELIMINARY DATA DEMONSTRATE CEST MRI OF MYO-INOSITOL AND GLUTAMATE IN MOUSE BRAINS, WHICH ARE A MARKER OF GLIAL ACTIVATION, AND A PRIMARY EXCITATORY NEUROTRANSMITTER, RESPECTIVELY. EMPLOYING THE CEST CONTRASTS OF ARVS, WE HAVE SUCCESSFULLY DETECTED THE DRUGS IN THE CNS USING MRI. BASED ON THESE RESULTS, WE POSIT NEUROPATHOLOGICAL MARKERS OF ALTERED MYO- INOSITOL AND GLUTAMATE CAN BE MEASURED AND LINKED TO ART CNS BIODISTRIBUTION USING NONINVASIVE IMAGING TECHNIQUES. THE IMAGING TECHNIQUES WILL BE DEPLOYED IN HIV-INFECTED HUMANIZED MICE INCLUDING THOSE ANIMALS ENRICHED FOR HUMAN MICROGLIA. THESE ANIMALS ARE CRITICAL FOR PRECLINICAL STUDIES TO DETERMINE HIV-ASSOCIATED NEUROPATHOLOGY AND ART-LINKED NEUROPROTECTIVE ACTIVITIES. THE IMAGING TECHNIQUES CAN BE TRANSLATED TO CLINICAL RESEARCH AFTER OPTIMIZATION. AIM 1. GLUTAMATE AND MYO-INOSITOL WILL BE MEASURED USING MRI EMPLOYING THEIR CEST CONTRASTS IN HIV-INFECTED HUMANIZED MICROGLIAL MICE TREATED WITH COMBINATION ART (CART). WE HYPOTHESIZE THAT IMAGING RESULTS OF GLUTAMATE AND MYO-INOSITOL ALTERATIONS REFLECT VIRUS INDUCED NEUROPATHOLOGY AS BIOMARKERS OF DISEASE. THE CEST CONTRASTS OF GLUTAMATE AND MYO-INOSITOL WILL BE FIRST CHARACTERIZED IN VITRO FOLLOWED BY IN VIVO TESTING. THERE-DIMENSIONAL (3D) CEST MRI SEQUENCES WILL BE DEVELOPED BASED ON THE IN VITRO RESULTS AND USED TO MEASURE THE GLUTAMATE AND MYO-INOSITOL SIMULTANEOUSLY IN THE WHOLE BRAIN OF HIV-INFECTED HUMANIZED MICROGLIAL MICE TREATED WITH CART. AIM 2. ARV LEVELS IN THE CNS WILL BE MEASURED USING CEST MRI IN INFECTED MICE. THE RESULTS WILL BE TESTED FOR ASSOCIATION WITH METABOLIC IMAGING MARKERS UNCOVERED IN AIM 1 TO STUDY THE EFFECTS OF ART ON NEUROPATHOLOGICAL/NEUROPROTECTIVE OUTCOMES. VIRAL, IMMUNE (CD4+ T CELL) DATA WILL BE ACQUIRED AND COMPARED WITH IMAGING RESULTS OF METABOLITES AND ART. THE HYPOTHESIS IS THAT THE BIOAVAILABILITY/BIODISTRIBUTION OF ARVS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE MITIGATION OF NEUROPATHOLOGY. THE OVERARCHING GOAL IS TO DEVELOP CEST AS A RELIABLE BIOMARKER FOR MEASURES OF NEUROHIV-1 PATHOLOGY AND ART NEUROPROTECTION. THE PROJECT PROVIDES ESSENTIAL TOOLS FOR PRECLINICAL STUDIES OF NEUROHIV THAT CAN BE TRANSLATED FOR FUTURE HUMAN CLINICAL RESEARCH.
Mod # | Description | ReasonForModification | Federal Obligation | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not listed | $0 | 7/31/25 | ||
| Not listed | $422.1k | 8/14/23 |