The Bipolar Disorder Center, part of the Mulva Clinic for the Neurosciences at Dell Medical School at The University of Texas at Austin, has been awarded a $2.3 million research grant as part of the BD² Integrated Network initiative, a landmark effort aimed at improving care, interventions and outcomes for individuals living with bipolar disorder.
The BD² Integrated Network represents the largest bipolar disorder research program of its kind, with the goal of following 4,000 individuals with bipolar disorder over a five-year period across 15 coordinated sites worldwide, of which Dell Med is now a member site alongside Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University, Mayo Clinic, the University of Michigan and more.
“This is an incredible opportunity for Dell Medical School, as the anchor of the new University of Texas Medical Center, to contribute to such a significant global research effort with other leading academic medical centers,” says Jorge Almeida, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Bipolar Disorder Center and associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. “The BD² Integrated Network will provide invaluable insights into the biological, psychological and social factors that impact individuals with bipolar disorder, ultimately improving outcomes for patients.”
The award supports a local collaborative study with key contributions from co-leads Elizabeth Lippard, Ph.D., and Vijay Gorrepati, M.D., alongside an interdisciplinary team of experts across The University of Texas at Austin. The study, which involves establishing a learning health network and a deep phenotyping protocol over five years to learn more about how the brain is impacted by bipolar disorder, will be conducted in partnership with fellow network member institutions worldwide, some with over 50 years of tradition in leading bipolar disorder research.
“This initiative is unique in its scale and scope,” Almeida says. “In addition to the core research, it also opens doors for future funding opportunities and fostering collaboration with other BD² grantees working on complementary projects in areas such as brain omics and genetics.”