Led by Dr. Bridget Matikainen-Ankney, the Feeding Interest Group brings together researchers from across Rutgers to foster collaboration, share data, and discuss ongoing studies. The inaugural meeting on January 17 featured a diverse lineup of speakers, ranging from graduate students to senior faculty, presenting their latest findings on the neurobiology of feeding. The event was well attended, and plans are underway to hold another meeting in six months. For questions or to share ideas, please contact Dr. Matikainen-Ankney at bridget.m@rutgers.edu.

Dr. Steven Malin, Associate Professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Health at Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences, published a study in Aging Cell suggesting that exercise enhances brain function by activating specialized insulin-responsive cells, potentially reducing the risk of dementia. The findings indicate that physical activity may improve cognition and memory by enhancing insulin signaling in the brain, paving the way for therapies targeting insulin action to slow or prevent dementia progression. Dr. Michal Schnaider Beeri, Director of the Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center in BHI, is a collaborator and co-author of the paper.

Dr. Natasha O'Brown, Assistant Professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience at Rutgers–New Brunswick, has been awarded the Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award by the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation. This $400,000 award, spanning two years, supports her project, "Leveraging zebrafish to overcome the blood-brain barrier in glioblastoma treatment." Dr. O'Brown’s research aims to control the blood-brain barrier (BBB) to enhance brain tumor treatments. Using zebrafish, her lab identifies small molecules to open the barrier and develops personalized treatment plans to improve patient survival.

Dr. Antonina Mitrofanova, tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics and Associate Dean for Research at Rutgers School of Health Professions, has received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE). This award represents the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government to outstanding early-career scientists and engineers and highlights their exceptional leadership in science and technology. Dr. Mitrofanova’s lab integrates computational algorithms to uncover molecular mechanisms driving disease progression and therapy responses, focusing on personalized treatment strategies for cancer patients.

Dr. Michael Shiflett, Associate Research Professor in the Department of Psychology, and Dr. Elizabeth Holly, Assistant Professor in the Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, both at Rutgers SAS-Newark, received an R03 grant from the National Institute of Mental Health for the project “Motivational control of sensory-seeking behavior and its relevance to behavioral addictions.” The research focuses on operant sensory seeking (OSS) behavior, where mice performed actions to produce sensory stimuli like light or sound, which serve as intrinsic reinforcers. The project aims to explore how environmental and internal factors, such as variability, novelty, and stress, influence OSS. Additionally, the study will examine how adolescent isolation, a form of early-life stress, impacts OSS, with potential implications for understanding and mitigating behavioral addictions.

Dr. Hilary Grosso Jasutkar, Instructor in the Department of Neurology at RWJMS, received an R03 grant from the National Institute on Aging for the project “Enhancing Synaptic Autophagy for Neuroprotection in Alzheimer's disease”. The project focuses on understanding and optimizing synaptic autophagy to combat Alzheimer’s-related synapse loss. Using innovative biochemical, genetic, and behavioral approaches in mouse models, the research aims to uncover how AD pathogenesis disrupts synaptic autophagy and whether boosting this process can offer neuroprotection.

We are excited to share the launch of our all-new Rutgers Brain Health Institute website! With a fresh design and user-friendly features, the site showcases BHI’s leadership in neuroscience and brain health research, collaboration, and education. Explore news, events, faculty achievements, and trainee opportunities, all in one place. Please take a moment to visit our new website and discover everything we have to offer. We value your input—please complete this survey to share your feedback and help us continue improving your experience!

The 2024 BHI Symposium marked the 10th anniversary of the Rutgers Brain Health Institute, a milestone for celebrating a decade of innovation, collaboration, and groundbreaking advancements in neuroscience. Held on November 14–15 at the Douglass Student Center, the two-day event brought together more than 300 academic leaders, researchers, trainees, and industry professionals. Thank you to everyone who joined us in making this milestone celebration a tremendous success! Your feedback is important to us. Final chance to complete this survey by Feb 15 to share your thoughts and help us continue to improve future events.

The PAWG is the only working group at the BHI that's dedicated to all Rutgers trainees engaged in neuroscience, brain and mental health research and training. We would like to collect as much trainee (post-doc, PhD student, Master's, undergraduate) information as we can. This database can then serve as a listserv for us to disseminate important information to you, such as symposiums, seminars, travel awards, fellowships, outdoor events and trivia nights, and even instructions on how to file your taxes on a fellowship. This data will also serve YOU. We will compile anonymous trainee stats (# trainees, pubs, fellowships, etc.) for you to use in your grant and fellowship applications when you discuss the BHI. Please complete this survey.

The BHI is pleased to announce the Spring 2025 trainee travel award for Rutgers neuroscience PhD, MD/PhD students and post-docs. BHI will provide $500 awards to help offset the cost of attending a national or international conference related to neuroscience or mental health research during the current year (i.e., by June 30, 2025). To apply for the awards, please fill out the application form, attach the conference abstract to be presented (250 word maximum), your recent CV, and a single page letter of support from lab PI. Submit all materials by Feb 7, 2025, to bhi@bhi.rutgers.edu.

The New Jersey Autism Center of Excellence (NJACE) led by Dr. Wayne Fisher, Director of RUCARES in BHI, aims to help New Jersey researchers connect with individuals with autism and their families who may be interested in participating in research. We anticipate funding up to four seed grants with a maximum of $2,000 per award. Please complete the request form and submit it to Hnorris@childrensspecialized.org to be considered for funding.

Learn more about the new NIH-funded undergraduate research training program, “Training in Research Undergraduate Experience through the Rutgers Addiction Research Center at the BHI, the “TRUE RARC” Scholar Program. Our goal is to onboard students into promising career pathways in behavioral data science in addiction and related research, and our program is geared to supporting students through graduate school matriculation. Please reach out to true-scholar@rutgers.edu if you have any questions. 

The LHS Scholars Training Program aims to cultivate a new generation of leaders in Learning Health Systems (LHS) Science by providing comprehensive education, training, mentorship, and career development opportunities tailored to the professional interests of embedded investigators, clinicians, and health system personnel. Their goal is to nurture LHS Scholars who will contribute to academia, industry, and government.

The BHI and the RARC are pleased to announce the mock grant review program at Rutgers University. The primary objective of this program is to increase the success of grant proposals submitted to NIH by Rutgers investigators from the BHI and/or the RARC.

The Brain Modulation & Control Lab is recruiting paid volunteers to perform computer-based tasks while recording electroencephalography (EEG) data and applying transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to study brain dynamics related to eye movement tasks. If you are interested in this study, please contact bmclab@rwjms.rutgers.edu

The Rutgers Addiction Research Center in BHI is currently running a research study to evaluate a newly developed online platform that provides individuals with personalized risk profiles that combine genetic, behavioral, and environmental information. Participants will receive their personalized risk profile for free as well as up to $40 in compensation for completing research surveys to help the study team evaluate the program.

The Rutgers Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center is launching a study to understand the characteristics that may place South Asian populations at heightened risk for Alzheimer's disease. This study seeks to recruit individuals with ethnic or racial backgrounds from South Asian countries, aged 45-70, who have one or more parents with AD. Participants at Rutgers can receive up to $175. Participants will undergo comprehensive assessments every two years, encompassing surveys, cognitive and language assessments, motor function tasks, blood tests, physical and neurological exams, as well as brain imaging. For eligibility and inquiries, contact the Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer Research Center at adrd@bhi.edu or visit www.adrd.rutgers.edu

The RARC is partnering with the Institute for Prevention and Recovery (IFPR) to establish a streamlined process for enhanced collaboration among Rutgers researchers who want to partner with RWJBarnabas to analyze substance use disorder outcome data and/or implement new studies in the health system.

The Research Community Partnership (RCP), overseen by the RARC, is a central enrollment hub for community members to participate in Rutgers research projects, and for researchers to recruit for their studies. By signing up for the RCP, individuals agree to be contacted by approved researchers to participate in projects. Participants can choose to accept or decline any project to which they are invited. Anyone who wants to be a part of research can enroll in the RCP.

The newly established Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center in BHI will serve as a hub for collaboration, innovation, and transformative research, with the mission of making meaningful strides in the prevention, diagnosis, and care of Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders (ADRD). If you are interested in learning more or collaborating with the center, please submit the form to provide your contact information.

Grants Administrator at the BHI

The primary purpose of the Grants Administrator is to be responsible for the management of all sponsored grants, contracts, and other non-sponsored accounts and related functions associated with research and institute-related activities at the BHI and its Centers. The Grants Administrator will be responsible for assisting BHI administered faculty with budget development for grant proposals.

Program Manager at the BHI

The primary purpose of the Program Manager is to manage the research and administrative functions of BHI-administered faculty and staff. The Program Manager will be responsible for managing the Pre-Award function for all grants and contracts associated with sponsored research at the BHI and its centers. This includes supervising a grant administrator, identifying potential funding opportunities and ensuring that BHI-administered faculty and staff perform timely application preparation, assembly, and submission.

We seek an accomplished scientist or physician-scientist eligible for the rank of tenured Associate or Full Professor to join the Department of Neurosurgery under new leadership at Rutgers Health and BHI as Director of the new Neurotechnology Innovation Center (NTICe) at BHI. The goal of NTICe is to develop a world-class research center that serves as a platform for interdisciplinary collaborations among basic and translational scientists, clinicians, engineers and industry partners to propel discovery of innovative, groundbreaking neurotechnology that can be brought from the bench to the bedside to treat debilitating neurological and psychiatric diseases.

The Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center at the BHI is seeking data scientists for a tenure-track faculty position at the Associate or Full Professor level at RWJMS and BHI within RBHS. We seek a faculty member who is experienced in using advanced statistical and machine learning techniques to analyze datasets related to aging, Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias.

The Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center at BHI is seeking a board-certified geriatric psychiatrist or geriatric neurologist with clinical and research experience in Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias. The candidate will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team including physicians experts in dementia research and care, neuropsychologists and neuropathologists, on a clinician-scientist track. Applicants should have experience in conducting clinical trials (as PI or site PI), experience conducting longitudinal studies, and an interest in studying preclinical Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

The Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center at BHI is seeking a neuroimaging leader for a tenure-track position at the Associate or Full Professor level at BHI, and RWJMS within RBHS. We seek a faculty member who is experienced in using neuroimaging techniques to image human brain structure and activity as it relates to aging, Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias. The candidate will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team, including neurologists, neuropsychologists, and neuropathologists.

The Department of Psychology in the Rutgers University-New Brunswick, School of Arts and Sciences in Piscataway, New Jersey invites applications for a tenure-track faculty position at the Assistant Professor level in Behavioral & Systems Neuroscience (BSN), with a start date of September 1, 2025. The ideal candidate is expected to lead a research program using advanced neuroscience approaches that would complement departmental strengths in one or more of the following pre-clinical areas: 1) sensory and computational neuroscience; 2) motivational and affective neuroscience; and 3) learning and memory.

The Rutgers Training in Addiction Research Program (TARP) announced the availability of a postdoctoral position. Interested applicants should email their CV to Chris Pierce at chris.pierce@rutgers.edu.

The Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center at the BHI is recruiting a tenured or tenure-track faculty member at the Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor level to expand our research portfolio in the basic science of neurodegenerative diseases. We seek scholars with innovative, rigorous, and impactful basic research programs focusing on the gut-brain axis related to aging, Alzheimer’s disease, or associated dementias. Applicants should submit a CV and a brief statement of research accomplishments and plans to Dr. Miriam Bocarsly at bocarsme@njms.rutgers.edu and a copy to bhi@bhi.rutgers.edu.

The Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center at BHI seeks a neuroimaging leader for a tenure-track position at the Associate or Full Professor level, a board-certified geriatric psychiatrist with clinical experience in caring for persons with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias, and a neuropsychologist with a research career devoted to the neuropsychology of Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias.

The BHI, RUCARES, and Department of Pediatrics at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (RWJMS) are seeking a tenure-track assistant or associate professor for a clinical research program focused on improving interventions for young children with autism spectrum disorder. 

The CAHBIR is recruiting for multiple faculty positions at all levels (Assistant/Associate/ Professor). We seek investigators who use innovative MRI approaches to image human brain structure and function. Individuals who utilize additional approaches such as EEG, tDCS, and rTMS to study human brain function would also be attractive.