$4M grant for first-of-its-kind study on bipolar disorder
October 29, 2025 — A University of Minnesota research team has been awarded a $4.4 million grant for a first-in-the-world study of prefrontal cortical stimulation in severe bipolar disorder. The study is led by Dr. Ziad Nahas of the University of Minnesota Medical School, and Biomedical Engineering Professor Tay Netoff and Associate Professor Alexander Opitz are part of the study team.
The funding, from Breakthrough Discoveries for thriving with Bipolar Disorder (BD²), will be used to explore how large-scale brain networks regulate mood in bipolar disorder, and how pushing and pulling these networks may contribute to the shifts between depression and mania.
The research will specifically test a novel type of brain stimulation — known as Personalized and Adaptive Cortico Electrostimulation (PACE) — shown to treat depressive symptoms. By doing so, the team also aims to identify the underlying mechanisms of mood switching in bipolar disorder and use optimal tuning of stimulation parameters to relieve symptoms.
Categories: