We celebrated April Autism Acceptance Month by spotlighting two researchers dedicated to autism research. Dr. Brian Greer, Assistant Director of Rutgers University Center for Autism Research, Education, and Services (RUCARES) at BHI, and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (RWJMS), and Dr. Miriam Rosenberg-Lee, Assistant Professor of Psychology at Rutgers University - Newark, shared their groundbreaking work in the autism research.

At RUCARES, Dr. Brian Greer leads the Severe Behavior Program, a service line of a collaborative effort with Children’s Specialized Hospital (CSH), to provide intensive and highly specialized services to children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder and other developmental disabilities. Dr. Greer explores novel treatment approaches, develops community training opportunities for autism service providers, and fosters new partnerships in autism research and training. 

Dr. Miriam Rosenberg-Lee focuses on how the brain acquires and masters complex cognitive skills, like mathematics. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, she studies how brain regions interact during demanding cognitive tasks and combines these techniques with behavioral training programs to explore how learning shapes brain activity. She is interested in understanding how learning may be altered in children with learning disabilities and autism spectrum disorders.

Congratulations to Dr. Gary Aston-Jones, BHI Director, Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry, and Murray and Charlotte Strongwater Endowed Chair in Neuroscience and Brain Health, for his election as an AAAS Fellow. The recognition highlights Dr. Aston-Jones’ contributions and innovation in the field of circuit and behavioral neuroscience, particularly using electrophysiology, neuroanatomy, and behavioral analyses to delineate brain mechanisms involved in human mental function and dysfunction. 

Dr. Wayne Fisher, Henry Rutgers Endowed Professor of Pediatrics at the RWJMS, Director of RUCARES, and BHI core faculty member, received the Enduring Contributions to Behavior Analysis Award from the Texas Association for Behavior Analysis (TxABA). The award is bestowed upon individuals who over their career in behavior analysis have made major contributions to the profession recognized nationally and internationally.

Dr. Mark Gradwell, a post-doc in Dr. Victoria Abraira’s lab, published a new study “Multimodal sensory control of motor performance by glycinergic interneurons of the mouse spinal cord deep dorsal horn” in Neuron. The study sheds light on the deep dorsal horn of the spinal cords as a hub for sensory convergence. The research enhances our understanding of the spinal circuits that allow sensory information from the periphery to produce contextually appropriate motor output. 

Dr. Morgan James, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at RWJMS and BHI core faculty member, has teamed up with a local high school student to build a machine-learning approach for screening current and existing drugs to determine which have the potential to become effective treatments for addiction-related disorders.

The BHI Neurodegeneration and Injury (NDI) FAWG has bestowed the Postdoc Award upon Dr. Benton Purnell, an INSPIRE Program postdoc fellow. The $2,500 cash prize acknowledges Dr. Purnell's exceptional scientific productivity, teamwork, and commitment to DEI initiatives.

We're thrilled to announce the winners of the 2023-2024 Spring Rutgers Brain Health Institute Trainee Travel Award. This opportunity aims to facilitate the sharing of research with a broader audience and foster collaborations with scientists in their field. BHI will award them $500 to help offset travel costs to attend national and international scientific meetings.

The BHI Postdoctoral Alliance Working Group (PAWG) hosted a booth and represented BHI at Rutgers Day on April 27, disseminating information about BHI, engaging in neuroscience-related activities, and offering small prizes to attract attention. We deeply appreciate the participation of all visitors and the dedication of our team and volunteers, including Hannah Nacht, Ridhi Hirpara, and Clara Berdasco. PAWG, the latest addition to the BHI Working Group family, aligns its efforts with other FAWGs and the Executive Advisory Council to amplify trainee voices. Drs. Jac Eisdorfer and Aysegul Gungor-Aydin serve as Chair and Vice Chair, respectively, supported by faculty liaison Dr. Kasia Bieszczad

The Training in Addiction Research Program (TARP) Annual Symposium on April 17 featured keynote speaker Dr. Rita Goldstein, Mount Sinai Professor in Neuroimaging and Addiction at the Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience/Friedman Brain Institute (FBI) in the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. The symposium highlighted the achievements of the new NIH funded T32 training grant in addiction neuroscience obtained by Dr. Chris Pierce, Professor of Psychiatry in RWJMS, BHI Core faculty and Assistant Director for Education and Training in BHI. Three graduate students and three postdocs enrolled in the T32 presented their research findings at the symposium.

In April, the BHI 2023-2024 Plenary Seminar Series featured speakers Helen Mayberg, MD, from Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Michael Kahana, PhD, from University of Pennsylvania, and Yishi Jin, PhD, fromUniversity of California San Diego. Save the date for our upcoming Plenary Seminar in May!

The Rutgers Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center in the BHI announced the 2024-25 Pilot Grants Program, via a generous gift from the “Remember Me Inc., Fighting Alzheimer’s” Foundation. This initiative aims to foster collaborative, interdisciplinary research focusing on Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) within the Rutgers community. By supporting projects at the intersection of basic science and clinical research, we aim to accelerate the development of therapies and interventions for ADRD. The application deadline is June 15, 2024.

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 New Jersey Autism Center of Excellence (NJACE) 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.

The newly established Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center at 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.

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.

Two full-time Postdoctoral Research Associate positions are available in Dr. Kristina Jackson’s laboratory at the Rutgers Addiction Research Center (RARC). Candidates will have the opportunity to make contributions to ongoing grant-funded studies at Rutgers and collaborating sites while also developing their own research careers. 

The BHI and the Dept. of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, RWJMS are recruiting a tenured or tenure track faculty member at the Associate or Full Professor level to expand our research portfolio in auditory neuroscience, broadly defined to include animal- or human subjects-based research programs. The successful candidate must have a PhD, MD, or equivalent doctoral degree as well as a research program with currently active federal funding addressing key questions regarding auditory neuroscience.

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, RARC, and Rutgers New Jersey Medical School Department of Emergency Medicine are recruiting a tenure-track faculty member at the Associate or Assistant Professor level with expertise in addiction, substance use, or overdose. We are particularly interested in candidates with research programs in opioid and/or alcohol addiction.

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.