The University of Michigan MiBrain Initiative has funded a proposal by Monica Dus, Assistant Professor of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, and Peter Freddolino, Assistant Professor, Biological Chemistry. According to Dus, "this grant describes a new collaboration with the Freddolino lab to use machine learning approaches to analyze and integrate gene expression and metabolism datasets."

The MiBrain Initiative, developed in response to a federal call to boost understanding of the complexities of the brain through development of new technologies, challenged UM faculty to propose innovative, high-risk strategies to study neural circuits, leading to a better understanding of emotions, movement and cellular diversity. Thirty-one MiBrain proposals were received with 74 UM faculty members participating.

Eleven proposals were selected for funding at the level of $100,000 for one year. This proposal was judged to be among the most innovative and exciting and we look forward to hearing about your success from this project.

Each proposal was reviewed by 2-3 members of the UM faculty. Funding decisions were made by an advisory council, with representation from various units across campus. This advisory council, co-chaired by Drs. Jill Becker and Huda Akil, evaluated both the grant proposals and the reviews. This was a difficult task as there were many great ideas, innovative strategies and novel technologies.

Read more about the MiBrain Initiative at "UM Seeds High Risk, High Payoff Research under MiBrain Initiative" in the University Record.