Harvard / MIT Joint Research Grants Program in Basic Neuroscience

This research grants program supports collaborative research in basic neuroscience.

Proposals for innovative, high risk, basic neuroscience research are invited from principal investigators from across the Harvard and MIT communities.

The program is intended to forge collaborations between PIs who have not previously worked together. Collaborations involving at least two PIs from different departments and ideally from different institutions are particularly encouraged.

2011 Competition:

The deadline for proposals for the 2011 competition was 1st September 2011. Thirty-two proposals were received and the program's Scientific Advisory Board met early October and selected the following five winners.

Congratulations go to:

Bernardo Sabatini (Dept. of Neurobiology, HMS) and Rudolph Jaenisch (Whitehead Institute & Dept. of Biology, MIT) for their proposal: A genetically defined human neuronal model of Tuberous Sclerosis Complex.

Stephen Liberles (Dept. of Cell Biology, HMS) and Bradford Lowell (BIDMC) for their proposal: Molecular and genetic analysis of the vagus nerve.

Alexander Schier (Dept. of Molecular & Cellular Biology, Harvard FAS) and Constance Cepko (Dept. of Genetics, HMS) for their proposal: Circuit analysis by transsynaptic labeling with vesticular stomatitis virus vectors.

Rebecca Saxe (Dept. of Brain & Cognitive Sciences, MIT) and Anne Fulton (Dept. of Opthamology, Children's Hospital) for their proposal: Development of cross modal plasticity in occipital cortex of blind children. 

Richard Masland (Massachusetts Eye & Ear Infirmary) and Sebastian Seung (Dept. of Brain & Cognitive Sciences, MIT) for their proposal: Retinal ganglion cells: high throughput imaging. 

Each winning proposal will receive $100,000 per year for each of two years.

2010 Competition: 

Fifty-eight proposals were received from a total of 128 principal investigators from twelve institutions.

The program's Scientific Advisory Board met October 18th 2010 to select five winners.

Michela Fagiolini (Dept. of Neurology, Children's Hospital) and Elly Nedivi (Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, MIT) for their proposal: Role of activity-dependent gene cpg15 in development and plasticity of visual cortical circuits.

Norbet Perrimon (Dept. of Genetics, HMS) and Troy Littleton (Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, MIT) for their proposal: Systematic RNAi analysis of synaptic trafficking pathways at drosophila synapses.

Ed Boyden (Dept. of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT) and Aravinthan Samuel (Dept. of Physics, Harvard FAS) for their proposal: Optogenetic strategies for powering neurons without oxidative phosphorylation.

Florian Engert (Dept. of Molecular & Cellular Biology, Harvard FAS) and Adam Cohen (Dept. of Chemistry & Chemical Biology, Harvard FAS) for their proposal: Design and implementation of a new proteorhodopsin-based genetically encoded voltage indicator.

George Church (Dept. of Genetics, HMS), Matthew Frosch (Dept. Neuropathology, MGH) and Merit Cudkowicz (Dept. of Neurology, MGH) and their colleagues Michael Chou (HMS) and Robert Brown (UMass) for their proposal: The role of somatic mutation in sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. 

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