The BRAIN Initiative® and NIDCD

A primary aim of the BRAIN Initiative is building tools—including computational tools—and knowledge resources for understanding how neural circuits function. A number of these tools and resources are broadly applicable across diverse fields of research, including NIDCD-related mission areas.

John Ngai, Ph.D., BRAIN Initiative director, explains: “The scientific mission areas of NIDCD—spanning speech and language, auditory and vestibular function, and chemosensation—provide not only fertile ground for understanding the molecular, cellular, and circuit basis of behavior, but also great inspiration and opportunity for developing new tools and therapies that can be generalized across diverse areas of neuroscience."

Between 2021 and 2023, the BRAIN Initiative awarded approximately 77 new grants—totaling more than $91 million—in research related to NIDCD mission areas. Many awards involve current and former NIDCD grantees. This investment has led to transformative technologies that have accelerated the pace of discovery. For example, BRAIN investigators have programmed a voice synthesizer to mimic natural speech based on human brain signals (U01NS098971); visualized neuronal activity in the olfactory epithelium of animal models in response to odorants (U01NS094296, UF1NS108213, R01DC013553); made advances toward developing an intracranial auditory nerve implant similar to the cochlear implant (UG3NS107688); and developed an innovative device to treat certain forms of tinnitus (RF1MH114244). Read more about NIDCD’s participation in the BRAIN Initiative in an August 2024 BRAIN Blog post.

Learn more about funded awards in NIDCD mission areas:

• Hearing funded awards
• Smell funded awards
• Speech funded awards
• Language funded awards

Funding Opportunities

BRAIN Initiative grantees range from trainees to early stage investigators to well-established researchers. While the initiative largely focuses on collaborative, multidisciplinary science, it offers an array of opportunities including single-investigator awards, exploratory/planning awards, training and small business grants, supplements to existing awards, and pathway to independence grants for those transitioning from postdoctoral to faculty positions. Learn about the various BRAIN Initiative programs.

Search for current funding opportunities.

Watch a recording of our April 2022 virtual seminar, Demystifying the BRAIN Initiative Program: Guidance to Potential NIDCD Applicants.