Thirteen innovative project proposals have been selected for implementation in the Human Brain Project EBRAINS Infrastructure.

Close-up of the  BrainScaleS-2 ASIC. Image taken from the publication “Training spiking multi-layer networks with surrogate gradients on an analog neuromorphic substrate, by B. Cramer and S. Billaudelle et al. 2020”, which is based on the former voucher SuperSpike.

The aim of the Voucher Call is to open EBRAINS to meet the needs of the user community in a new dynamic way: the vouchers fund HBP engineers to solve the technical and scientific questions of the winning proposals via the development of new platform tools and advancement of available services.

The call received 25 eligible proposals from researchers and groups from all over the world.

After much thoughtful deliberation, a team of fifteen evaluators, who were all external to the HBP consortium, announced the following winning proposals:

Map of dopamine receptor positive cell types in the developing and adult mouse brain (DOPAMAP)

Jee Hyun Kim, The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Australia

HBP contact: Trygve B. Leergaard, University of Oslo, Norway

Workflow optimization for brain-wide spatial analysis to identify regional and cell-type correlates of resilience to Alzheimer’s in the AD-BXD mouse population (BRAINSPACE)

Catherine Kaczorowski, The Jackson Laboratory, USA

HBP contact: Maja Puchades, University of Oslo, Norway

Enhanced mouse atlas for cerebellar connectivity (ATLAS-cer)

Hannah Choi (leader), University of Washington, and Stefan Mihalas and Julie Harris, Allen Institute for Brain Science, USA

HBP contact: Egidio D'Angelo, University of Pavia, Italy

Multiscale Striatal Models for Neuronal Plasticity: Integration to the Brain Simulation Platform (StriatalPlas)

Kim Blackwell (leader), George Mason University, USA, and Upinder Bhalla, National Center for Biological Sciences, India

HBP contact: Jeanette Hellgren Kotaleski, Karolinska Institute, Sweden, and Marja-Leena Linne, Tampere University of Technology, Finand

Integrating a Multimodal Olfactory Bulb Model into EBRAINS (INDOME)

Gordon M Shepherd (leader), Michael L. Hines and Robert A. McDougal, Yale University, USA

HBP contact: Michele Migliore, National Research Council, Italy

BOLD signal reconstruction and simulation from cellular data-driven models (BOLDsim)

Shyam Diwakar Mukundanunny, AMRITA Vishwa Vidyapeetham University, India

HBP contact: Egidio D'Angelo (leader), University of Pavia, Italy, and Viktor Jirsa, Aix-Marseille University, France

SODIUM signal reconstruction and simulation from cellular data-driven models (SODIUMsim)

Claudia Gandini Wheeler-Kingshott (leader), University College London, UK, and Giovanni Savini, IRCCS Mondino Foundation, Italy

HBP contact: Egidio D'Angelo (leader), University of Pavia, Italy, and Viktor Jirsa, Aix-Marseille University, France

Modeling Synaptic Plasticity in the Hippocampal Trisynaptic Circuit: Integration to the Brain Simulation Platform (HippoTrisynPlasticity)

Peter Jedlicka (leader), Justus-Liebig University Giessen, Germany, and Ausra Saudargiene, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Lithuania

HBP contact: Michele Migliore, National Research Council, Italy, and Jeanette Hellgren Kotaleski, Karolinska Institute, Sweden

Integration of NetPyNE into EBRAINS Platform (EBRnetpyne)

William Lytton (leader), Kings County Hospital, USA, and Salvador Dura, SUNY Downstate Medical Center, USA

HBP contact: Michele Migliore, National Research Council, Italy

Multiscale Mathematical Modeling: from Neurons to Networks (M3N2)

Addolorata Marasco, University of Naples Federico II, Italy

HBP contact: Michele Migliore, National Research Council, Italy

Whole-brain spiking neural network and rodent musculo-skeletal models integration for behavioral experimentation in the neurorobotics platform (RoBoBrain)

Kenji Doya (leader), Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Tadashi Yamazaki, The University of Electro-Communications, Jun Igarashi, RIKEN, Carlos E. Gutierrez, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate School, Japan

HBP contact: Fabrice Morin and Alois Knoll, Technical University Munich, Germany

Leveraging intrinsic recurrence for temporal processing in spiking neural networks (INTREC)

Friedemann Zenke, Friedrich Miescher Institute of Biomedical Research, Switzerland

HBP contact: Sebastian Billaudelle, Benjamin Cramer and Björn Kindler, Heidelberg University, Germany

Preparing brain models for exascale systems (EXABRAINPREP)

Jun Igarashi (leader), RIKEN, Kenji Doya, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Carlos Enrique Gutierrez, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate School, Tadashi Yamazaki, University of Electro-Communications, Japan

HBP contact: Hans Ekkehard Plesser, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway

We are already excited to see the projects developing with the new user community.

We thank all who have participated in the call.

We appreciated every proposal and would like to encourage all to explore EBRAINS; and in case you consider a collaboration to apply as a partnering project (non-funded).