SEED GRANTS
Brains & Behavior Seed Grants promote research in neuroscience and behavior at Georgia State University. Seed Grants are in amounts up to $30,000 for one calendar year and are intended to support research that will lead directly to the submission of an extramural research grant application. Interdisciplinary research is encouraged, although no longer required. The PI can be any tenured or tenure-track faculty at Georgia State University, provided they satisfy the new participation requirements, which are meant to insure that every B&B Seed Grant participant will be competitive as an extramural grant applicant.
Brains & Behavior Seed Grants promote research in neuroscience and behavior at Georgia State University. Projects can focus primarily on neuroscience or primarily on behavior or combine neuroscience and behavior, to reflect the diversity of scholarship of B&B departments. Seed Grants are in amounts up to $30,000 for one calendar year (July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025) and are intended to support research that will lead directly to the submission of an extramural research grant application. Interdisciplinary research is encouraged, although no longer required. The PI can be any faculty member at Georgia State University, provided they satisfy the following new participation requirements, which are meant to insure that every B&B seed grant participant will be competitive as an extramural grant applicant:
- PIs of winning B&B Seed grants cannot compete as PI for a B&B Seed Grant in the year after their grant was awarded (but they can be on one grant as a co-PI)
- Faculty can be PI on only one grant in a given cycle, if they are eligible to do so. Faculty can be co-PI on one grant each year, including years they are submitting a grant as PI, and there is no limit on listing as a consultant (although it should be a realistic effort distribution). Put another way, faculty can never be on more than two different budget lines (on two different grants) per year, and only one on years that they cannot be a PI.
- Post-docs are not eligible to apply.
- For Assistant Professors prior to their pre-tenure review, there are no additional requirements.
- For everyone else, the requirement is having published 1 paper per year on average over the previous 5 years and having submitted at least 1 major extramural grant application (federal or non-federal) over the past 24 months (or being currently funded or having been funded in the past 12 months).
- Applicants who do not meet these can petition the IDC prior to submitting their application and make the case that the quality of previous publications is sufficient to make their extramural grant applications competitive.
Current Seed Grants
Debra Bangasser
Neuroscience
Impact of ovarian hormone loss on prodromal Alzheimer’s disease pathophysiology
Sarah Barber
Psychology
Pilot testing an intervention to improve affective forecasting accuracy in younger and older adults
Igor Belykh
Math & Stat
Developing a toolbox for seizure onset localization
Gennady Cymbalyuk
Neuroscience
Revealing episodic bursting and multistability of the leech heartbeat central pattern generator: Collection of preliminary data for new NSF submission
Li-Hsiang Lin
Math & Stat
Transformation in independent component analysis with applications
Angela Mabb
Neuroscience
Exploring microglial contributions to Gordon Holmes syndrome: Insights into pathophysiology
Anne Murphy
Neuroscience
Impact of perigestational morphine on CNS cell proliferation and maturation
Hang Shi
Biology
Activation of GPR120 by fatty acids regulates sympathetic nerve activity and energy metabolism
Ashley Ware
Psychology
Properties of the blood-brain barrier after pediatric traumatic brain injury: A noninvasive MRI pilot study
Yi-An Chen
Occupational Therapy
The relationship between resting-state connectivity, motor performance, and treatment dosage after an in-home, app-assisted, music-based therapy following stroke.
Past Seed Grants
Dan Cox
Neuroscience
Proteostatic roles of specialized ribosomes in driving cell-type specific dendritic diversity: Collection of preliminary data for NIH R01 application
Katherine Hsieh
Physical Therapy
Effect of cognitive and exercise training on fall risk in people aging with multiple sclerosis
Marise Parent
Neuroscience
Brain metabolic mechanisms through which obesity increases Alzheimer’s disease
Shawn Dotson
Neuroscience
Investigating the influence of satiety peptides, and the associated cellular factors that mediate their detection and integration by cells, on the response properties of taste bud cells of the peripheral gustatory system.
Yaroslav Molkov
Math & Stat
Generation of preliminary data for NSF CRCNS US- France Research Proposal submission: Neural mechanisms of learning from errors
Armin Iraji
Computer Science
Dynamic multi-connectivity method to capture subject-specific, multiscale, spatiotemporal brain dynamics for characterizing the psychosis continuum
Dong Ye
Computer Science / TReNDS
Deep learning to predict individual outcome of mTBI
Rafaela Feresin
Nutrition
Blueberries for brain, gut, and cardiometabolic health in women with prediabetes
Desiree Wanders
Nutrition
Dietary tocotrienols for cognitive health: a focus on the gut-brain axis
Robyn Miller
TReNDS
Dynamic functional connectivity during flow elicited by a real‐ time creativity task
Vince Calhoun
TReNDS
Replicability of transcranial magnetic stimulation inducing dynamic functional connectivity in the brain
Neil Van Leeuwen
Philosophy
Belief updating and surprise: A neurophysiological study in psychedelic and non-psychedelic conditions
Aaron Roseberry
Neuroscience
Dopamine in the control of feeding: Preliminary data collection
Javier Stern
Neuroscience
Contribution of hippocampal neuroinflammation and hypoxia to cognitive deficits in heart failure. Collection of preliminary data for new R01 NIH submission
Michael Beran
Psychology
Testing the limits of prospective memory through monetary incentives
Anne Murphy
Neuroscience
Long term immune consequences of perigestational opioid exposure
Jessica Bolton
Neuroscience
The role of microglia in the central nucleus of the amygdala in the development of anhedonia-like behavior following early-life adversity
Aras Petrulis
Neuroscience
Generation of preliminary data for NSF/NIH submission: Developing a vasopressin-cre expressing line in wild mice
Yi-An Chen
Occupational Therapy
The influence of home-built environment on aging in place: Cognitive and activities of daily living functioning
Deb Baro
Biology
The role and regulation of PIAS3 in nociceptor ion channel modulation
Dan Cox
Neuroscience
Cellular, molecular and circuit-based mechanisms of experience-dependent plasticity and behavioral action selection in a thermosensory nociceptive circuit.
Shawn Dotson
Neuroscience
Hormonal signaling in Taste Cells: Investigating the mechanisms underlying the modulation of taste cell responsiveness by hormones and identifying potential targets for the pharmacological treatment of hyperphagia and obesity related conditions.
Vonetta Dotson
Psychology
Exercise to improve cognitive, mood, and brain outcomes in black older adults with vascular depression: Preliminary data for an R01 submission.
Page Anderson
Psychology
Optimizing digital mental health: Evaluating physical correlates of a novel computer task to measure cognitive biases within social anxiety disorder.
Sarah Brosnan
Psychology
Older and happier? Capuchin monkeys as a model for the impacts of aging on social relationships and attention to emotional information.
Laura Carruth
Neuroscience
Biomarkers for stress in parents and children at risk for perpetration of child abuse and neglect.
Yaroslav Molkov
Math
Generation of preliminary data for R01 submission: Neural mechanisms of abnormal breathing patterns in Rett Syndrome.
Gangli Wang
Chemistry
Ratiometric signal-on electrochemical sensors for drug monitoring at high specificity.
2020 Seed Grants
Jordan Hamm
Neuroscience
Parallel studies of novelty-processing circuits in humans and mice
Elliott Albers
Neuroscience
Sex-dependent regulation of social reward by oxytocin in the mesolimbic reward circuitry: New preliminary data for a re-submission of this R01
Aras Petrulis
Neuroscience
Generation of Preliminary Data for R01 submission: Developing a conditional vasopressin 1a receptor knockout mouse line
Jingyu(Jean) Liu
TReNDS
Modeling the relationship between dynamics of DNA methylation and brain development
Rob Latzman
Psychology
Elucidating associations between multimodal neurobehavioral affiliative capacity and quantitatively-derived dimensions of psychopathology
Gennady Cymbalyuk
Neuroscience
Collection of preliminary data for a competitive RO1 renewal submission focusing on “Mechanisms regulating dendritic release of neuropeptides”
Michael Beran
Psychology
The prevalence of aphantasia and its relation to cognitive competence
Jianhua Wu
Kinesiology & Health
Brain imaging biomarkers and neuromuscular dysfunction of children with cerebral palsy
Chun Jiang
Biology
Antitussive GIRK channel blockers in morphine-induced respiratory depression
2019 Seed Grants
Kim Huhman
Neuroscience
BDNF mechanisms: Preliminary data for R01 competitive renewal
Robin Morris
Psychology
Reading impairment in aphasia
Dan Cox
Neuroscience
Ancient molecular mechanisms underlying thermosensory nociception
Sarah Brosnan
Psychology
Uniting against a common enemy: the evolutionary roots of parochial altruism
Javier Stern
Neuroscience
Collection of preliminary data for a competitive RO1 renewal submission focusing on “Mechanisms Underlying Cognitive and Mood Disorders in Heart Failure”
Mukesh Dhamala
Physics & Astronomy
Video-game playing and sensorimotor decision-making
Walt Wilczynski
Neuroscience
Genomic and epigenetic consequences of social aggression
Anne Murphy
Neuroscience
Impact of perigestational opioid exposure on the neural circuitry of social behavior in male and female rats
Tricia King
Psychology
Cross validation of whole genome analyses and neuropsychological outcomes of medulloblastoma survivors
Angela Mabb
Neuroscience
Development, validation and use of a photoconvertible sensor for illuminating rodent neural ensembles in principle pyramidal excitatory neurons
Deb Baro
Biology
Increased SUMOylation of HCN2 ion channels contribute to
inflammatory pain
2018 Seed Grants
- Elliott Albers – Neuroscience – Collection of preliminary data for submission of an NIH R01 application to NIDA to investigate The role of Oxytocin in Social and Drug Award.
- Benoit Chassaing – Neuroscience -Impact of dietary emulsifier-mediated alteration of the intestinal microbiota on brain and behavior.
- Nancy Forger- Neuroscience – Role of the microbiota in brain development.
- Markus Germann- Chemistry – RNA Quadruplexes, therapeutic targets for neurological diseases.
- William Hopkins – Neuroscience – Using gene expression studies to identify candidate genes for joint attention, an autism phenotypes.
- Chun Jiang – Biology – Gaboxadol application in Rett syndrome models for symptom alleviation.
- Martin Norgaard – Music – The Effects of Musical Improvisation Instruction on Sequence Learning.
- Andrea Scarantino – Philosophy – Emotional expressions as speech act analogs: What do faces tell us.
- Andrey Shilnikov – Neuroscience – Stability and resilience of rhythm-generating neural circuits.
- Erin Tone – Psychology – Anxiety as a modulator of affective, behavioral and neural processes in social decision-making.
- Bingzhong Xue – Biology – Sensory neuron ghrelin signaling regulates metabolic homeostasis.
2017 Seed Grants
- Deb Baro- Biology– The role of HCN2 channel SUMOylation in chronic pain
- Dan Cox- Neuroscience– Cellular and molecular mechanisms of multimodal sensory processing
- Gennady Cymbalyuk- Neuroscience– Virtual intestine: Neuromechanical modeling of gut motility
- Sharee Light- Psychology– Fronto-striatal correlates of empathy subtypes in clinically anhedonic individuals with depression
- Marise Parent- Neuroscience– Preliminary data to support resubmission of RO1 application, “Hippocampal modulation of energy intake”
- Dominic Parrott- Psychology– Establishing a neurocognitive mechanism for the relation between trait disinhibition and physical aggression
- Aaron Roseberry– Biology– VTA MC3Rs in the control of feeding and body weight
- Jess Turner- Psychology– Translational validation of genetic factors in pre-diagnosis Huntington disease
- David Washburn- Psychology– Training monkeys to self-restrain for studies of brain-behavior relations
- Feng Yang- Kinesiology & Health– Effects of controlled whole-body vibration training in improving cognitive function in people with multiple sclerosis
2016 Seed Grants
- Eyal Aharoni– Psychology– An empirical examination of neurobiologically informed risk assessment
- Elliott Albers- Neuroscience– Collection of preliminary data for resubmission of an NIH R21 application entitled: Advances in the study of social neuroendocrinology
- Sarah Brosnan- Psychology– Understanding how social factors and hormonal signatures relate to variation in response to violated expectations in social groups
- Andrew Butler- Nursing– Brain network activity changes following stroke and rehabilitative treatments
- Nancy Forger- Neuroscience– The Role of Epigenetics in the Sexual Differentiation of Cell Phenotype
- Erin Hecht- Psychology– Neuroanatomical correlates of individual variation in cooperation and inequity aversion in capuchin monkeys
- Paul Katz- Neuroscience– Evo-Devo of neural circuits
- Rob Latzman- Psychology– Genetic foundation of self-awareness
- Heather Offutt- Psychology– Did I hear that? The role of imagination in psychosis
- Sarah Pallas- Neuroscience– The EphA/ephrinA signaling pathway as a barrier to regeneration after traumatic brain injury
- Aras Petrulis- Neuroscience– Optogenetic control of social communication
2015 Seed Grants
- Walt Wilczynski– Neuroscience Genomics of social status: Gene expression in dominate and subordinate individual
- Jessica Turner– Psychology Quantitative and dynamic EEG markers of anxiety in a mindfulness-based intervention
- Dan Cox– Neuroscience Connecting neural activity to circuitry in modulating nociceptive behavior
- Chun Jiang– Biology Inhibitory local neuronal network in the locus cerulean
- Aaron Roseberry– Biology αMSH regulation of dopamine circuits in the control of feeding and body weight
- Bingzhong Xue– Biology Neuronal DNA methyltransferase 1 regulates energy homeostatis
- Page Anderson– Psychology Does D-Cycloserine augment self-guided virtual reality exposure therapy for social anxiety disorder delivered on an iPad?
- Marise Parent– Neuroscience Neural mechanism underlying cognitive inhibition of energy intake
- William Hopkins– Neuroscience Declarative communication in chimpanzees and bonobos: An exploratory behavioral study
- Geert de Vries– Neuroscience Microbiota and neural circuits controlling social behavior
2014 Seed Grants
- Maged Henary- Chemistry Development of dual purpose diagnostic and therapeutic agents for brain tumor treatment based on quadruplex DNA recognition and binding
- Elliott Albers- Neuroscience Collection of preliminary data for the Silvio O. Conte centers for basic or translational mental health research proposal (Social behavior neural network coding and sex disparities in mental health)
- Chuck Derby- Neuroscience Molecular characterization of chemoreceptor proteins in crustaceans through transcriptomics and in situ hybridization
- Nancy Forger- Neuroscience The role of microglia in developmental neuronal cell death
- Raj Sunderraman- Computer Science Text-mining and databse tools for cognitive neuroscience
- Donald Edwards- Neuroscience The role of reafference in crayfish posture and locomotion
- Igor Belykh- Math Abnormal synchrony in evolving brain networks
- Mukesh Dhamala- Physics & Astronomy Neural basis of musical improvisation
- Deb Baro- Biology Creation of a crustacean microRNA database
- Paul Katz- Neuroscience A novel approach for identifying ligands of orphaned receptors
2013 Seed Grants
- Jenny Yang- Chemistry Developing novel contrasts agents for MR imaging of malignant brain tumor
- Diana Robins- Psychology Disruption of social cognition circuitry in autism spectrum disorders
- Geert J. de Vries- Neuroscience Sexually dimorphic affects of immune challenge on development of social behavior
- Sarah Pallas- Neuroscience Comparative analysis of mechanisms underlying critical period closure
- Aaron Roseberry- Biology Cellular regulation of mesolimbic dopamine neuron activity by Melanocortins
- Charles Derby- Neuroscience Development of experimental and computational tools to study the aquatic origin of olfaction, using the Spiny Lobster as an animal model
- Heather Kleider- Psychology Vivid imagining of false events leads to false memories: Comparisons of neural activity show differences in rejection and acceptance of imagined events
- Remus Osan- Math & Stat Dynamics of activity propagation in neural tissue: extension of data analysis and computational modeling to two-dimensional traveling waves
- Kim Huhman- Neuroscience Mechanisms of stress-induced social avoidance: The role of NPY and BDNF
- Robert Latzman- Psychology Variations in dopaminergic genes among chimpanzees (pan troglodytes): Associations with empirically-derived dimensions of personality
- Anne Murphy- Neuroscience Role of glia in the development of morphine tolerance
2012 Seed Grants
- Bradley Cooke- Neuroscience Linking Neural Plasticity to Social Behavior in the medial amygdala
- Paul Katz- Neuroscience Comparative analysis of neural circuit dynamics
- Matthew Grober- Biology The neuroendocrine regulation and fitness consequences of social aptitude
- Laura Carruth- Neuroscience Early developmental stress and the avian brain
- Charles Derby- Neuroscience Using laser capture to characterize the identity of cells in an olfactory stem cell niche
- Anne Murphy- Neuroscience Impact of neonatal injury on stress responsive circuits in the rat
- Vincent Rehder- Biology Small conductance potassium channels as a target for intrinsic NO regulation: cloning and mRNA expression
- Gennady Cymbalyuk- Physics & Astronomy Multistability in the dynamics of neurons and neuronal networks
2011 Seed Grants
- Laura Carruth- Neuroscience A song so sweet! The hormonal modulation of vocal communication
- Bradley Cooke- Neuroscience Sexually dimorphic cultured networks for basic and translational neuroscience
- Mukesh Dhamala- Physics & Astronomy Granger causality to improve localization of seizure onset
- Kyle Frantz- Neuroscience Adolescent drug vulnerability: Impact of stress
- Kim Huhman- Neuroscience Chromatin modification following social stress
- Chun Jiang- Biology Contribution of local neuronal network to bronchial constriction
- Anne Murphy- Neuroscience Impact of advanced age on opiate sensitivity
- Marise Parent- Neuroscience Impact of neonatal injury on adult cognitive function
- Aras Petrulis- Neuroscience The role of the medial amygdala in the processing of social signals
- Andrey Shilnikov- Neuroscience Dynamical principles of multifunctional central pattern generators
2010 Seed Grants
- Lucjan Strekowski- Chemistry Synthetic and computational studies of the ligand – 5-HT7 receptor interaction
- Paul Katz- Neuroscience Comparative expression of serotonin receptors
- Charles Derby- Neuroscience Calcium imaging of olfactory receptor neurons: Neural processing of sex pheromones in the blue crab
- Sarah Brosnan- Psychology An experimental study of the influence of social hierarchy in decision making
- Bradley Cooke- Neuroscience The role of CRF receptor activation during juvenile abuse in the development of adult anxiety & depression
- Matthew Grober- Biology Status and sex affect steriod synthesis in brains of sex changing fish
- Jenny Yang- Chemistry Structural-based design of calcium sensors and its applications to neuron activity
Contact Us
Neuroscience Institute Acting Director
Associate Director of Brains & Behavior Program
Interdisciplinary Committee Chair
Office Address:
880 Petit Science Center
100 Piedmont Avenue SE
Atlanta, GA, 30303
USPS Mailing Address:
Neuroscience Institute
Georgia State University
PO Box 5030
Atlanta, GA 30302-5030