Duke Institute for Brain Sciences

04/16/2026

Duke colleagues: is there a new development in your field of brain studies that captivates you, but you feel alone in your excitement? Do you want to grow a community at Duke to explore it?

DIBS wants to help you! Announcing the new, 3-yr DIBS Dream Team awards:

We are looking for visionary collectives of scholars who aspire to integrate ideas across disciplines to foster a new, energetic community in a field of brain studies. Co

04/07/2026

For young brain scientists eager to make their mark on the field, innovation is key. Turning visionary insights into new advances requires the courage to take a risk. But more practically, it requires funding that is getting harder to obtain. $25,000 can make all the difference in turning a great idea into a viable research project.

The Duke Institute for Brain Sciences (DIBS) recently awarded this level of support to six graduate students and postdoctoral fellows through its Germinator Award program. We set out to learn more about the awardees. What drives them to tackle brain research at the cutting edge?

The six recipients of 2026 Germinator Awards from the Duke Institute for Brain Sciences talk about their projects, their career pathways and what the $25,000 grant means

02/25/2026

04/09/2024

"I came to Duke as a mechanical engineer doing research in oil and gas, so I had no experience with biology, let alone the brain ... I hadn’t picked up a pipette since general chemistry in undergrad, and now I make cerebral organoids from human stem cells to study neuroinflammation. "

From engineering to growing brains-in-a-dish, Paris Brown has taken a fascinating path to Durham. At Duke, she's growing nerve cells to better understand neuroinflammation all while flying towards a future in neuroethics and science policy. Outside the lab, you might spot Paris situated in front of a pottery wheel, exploring state parks, or taking her pilot's license.

https://dibs.duke.edu/news/paris-brown/

04/01/2024

“I think there's a lot of moments of distress that don't necessitate a formal therapy appointment. If students can get support in those moments, it increases their confidence about their ability to handle difficult emotions,” said Duke Psychiatry's Dr. Nancy Zucker, referring to the text-based, student-run support line for Duke students that she established in collaboration with colleagues and students. Learn more about DukeLine in this Duke Chronicle feature! https://ow.ly/tcIz50R4UbT
Duke Institute for Brain Sciences

03/04/2024

Behold the dramatic changes in oxygen levels during hypoxia captured in real-time within a mouse’s brain. This “ultrafast photoacoustic microscopy” method , developed by the lab of DIBS member and Duke Engineering professor Junjie Yao, could one day revolutionize our understanding of other neurological diseases, such as dementia, Alzheimer’s, or even long COVID.

Full story: https://pratt.duke.edu/news/using-light-and-sound-reveal-rapid-brain-activity-unprecedented-detail/

02/26/2024

🧠 Immune Defense in the Brain 🛡️

Ever wonder how the brain stays healthy?

Dive into the latest discoveries from the lab of DIBS member and Duke Neurosurgery professor Anthony Filiano, who have recently uncovered how two key cells in the brain's protective layer interact to prevent or possibly trigger conditions like multiple sclerosis.

Today’s illuminates this crucial cell duet: mural cells (highlighted in green) lining the brain's blood vessels (red) within the meninges - a vital shield just beneath our skull. Changes in these cells can signal immune challenges, potentially unlocking new ways to understand autoimmune diseases.

02/19/2024

Canine Cognition: Separating the Wheatens from the Chaff 🐶💭

From left to right, we have Neutron, Nutmeg, Poppy, Nerine, and Pepsi, the latest class of Duke Canine Cognition Center's Puppy Kindergarten and today’s featured .

This cute quintet is taking part in research under the tutelage of DIBS member & professor of evolutionary anthropology Brian Hare, along with co-principal Vanessa Woods. By studying how different rearing strategies impact behavior and cognitive development of dogs, Hare, Woods, and a team of 100+ Duke undergrads help assess which promising puppies will most likely become successful assistance dogs with Canine Companions.

02/15/2024

🧠 The Duke Institute for Brain Sciences will use their 2024 Grant to fund programs providing graduate trainees with mentorship skills and opportunities. https://bit.ly/3RXW96t

02/12/2024

A Colorful Peek Inside a Mouse's Brain 🌈🧠

Today’s features a collaboration between Duke Radiology's G. Allan Johnson and Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke's Simon Gregory. Using 3D magnetic resonance imaging, they've captured a mouse’s brain in colorful detail to see how potentially changes cortical connections and topography. This rainbow-filled snapshot is the average brain image across a range of autism-like “high social” male mice using a technique called “color fractional anisotropy”.

Check out the for a sneak peek at the group's forthcoming study: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.15.575733v1.full

01/29/2024

Blinking brain cells light the way.

This week's offers a glimpse into the brain of a tiny minnow, the . By genetically linking a fluorescent protein from jellyfish to calcium inside the fish’s nerve cells, Duke neurobiology grad student Minel Arinel coaxes their neurons to light up every time they’re activated.

Minel’s research studies how the compound changes a zebrafish’s brain cell activity, specifically in the ventral hindbrain and inferior raphe, shown here. The ventral hindbrain generally helps control motor movement, which increasing concentrations of DOI reduces, whereas inferior raphe neurons provide a local supply of serotonin, which is a classic neurochemical that psychedelics activate.

Link in bio and bellow for more about Minel’s and other Duke brain scientists’ research on psychedelics

12/14/2023

Identifying who's at risk for post-op cognitive dysfunction may be done in the blink of an eye. A team of Duke University researchers led by Duke Anesthesiology's Dr.
Leah Acker found that a simple measurement while patients blink can predict cognitive vulnerability.

DURHAM, N.C. – Identifying an older patient who is at risk for post-operative cognitive dysfunction might be done in the blink of an eye – literally. Researchers at Duke Health found that a simple EEG measurement detects a signal of cognitive vulnerability when patients are asked to close, then ...