Project Grant R35GM163882

The National Institute of General Medical Sciences awarded Boston Children's Hospital $2.563 million on September 1, 2026, under the Biomedical Research and Research Training program (CFDA 93.859) to expand the biological capabilities of image-based transcriptomics by targeting short, homologous, and synthetic transcripts. The award funds development of multiplexed error-robust fluorescence in situ hybridization (MERFISH) methodology to overcome three key limitations of current image-based single-cell transcriptomics: difficulty targeting short mRNA regions, inability to distinguish sets of homologous mRNAs, and lack of capacity for synthetic transcript detection. The research builds on MERFISH's established track record in mapping cell types across diverse tissues, identifying previously undetected cell populations, characterizing cell-cell interactions, defining gene expression regulatory modules, and charting intracellular transcriptome organization—with recent extension to bacterial systems. Work is performed in Boston, Massachusetts, through August 31, 2030. The project grant funds investigator-initiated basic research to increase understanding of biological processes and support advances in disease diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.