Ahmet Coskun has a saying on the homepage of his  lab’s website : “Seeing is believing. Quantifying is proving.” So, with that in mind, Coskun and his team have developed multiplex imaging tools and combined them with machine learning techniques – for believing and quantifying.  

Now, to support Coskun’s research, the National Institutes of Health has granted him the prestigious  Maximizing Investigator’s Research Award  (MIRA) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences. Coskun and his team will use the five-year, $1.86 million award for a project entitled,  “Dissecting subcellular and cellular organization by spatial molecular neighborhood networks.”  

They plan to probe subcellular and cellular organization, counting molecular neighborhoods and building maps to help researchers better understand the spatial organization of cells and molecules, insights that can open the door to game-changing personalized treatments for multiple diseases. 

“The spatial organization of these neighborhoods, of RNA and protein molecules, is important for cellular function,” said Coskun, a Bernie Marcus Early Career Professor in the Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University. “So, we’re basically making maps of molecules within the cell.” 

The maps can ultimately help researchers identify cell types that would best treat various diseases, while also explaining why some patients will respond to a particular treatment, and others won’t. 

The NIH’s MIRA program provides researchers with greater stability and flexibility in funding while enhancing their ability to creatively tackle ambitious scientific problems. And part of the aim, said Coskun, “is to address basic biology questions that have implications on multiple diseases in the future. This single cell work has that kind of potential.” 

For Coskun, the MIRA is the next phase of support in a flurry of awards that have come his way recently: it’s the fifth NIH grant his lab has received this year, with a total value of $3.6 million. 

“This year has been a great year for us,” said Coskun. “It’s encouraging to receive this kind of recognition and support for research and technology that we believe will play an important role in the lives of patients.”  

Contact

Jerry Grillo
Communications
Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering

Georgia Life Sciences Designates City of Atlanta as Newest BioReady® Community

By Sheran Brown • February 21, 2025
Georgia Life Sciences Designates City of Atlanta as Newest BioReady® Community

Bipartisan PBM Reform Back in Focus as House Committee Plans Hearing

By Sheran Brown • February 20, 2025
A renewed push for prescription drug cost reform is gaining momentum in Congress, with the House Energy and Commerce Committee's health subcommittee planning a hearing on pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) reform for late February. The hearing, to be led by Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.), signals a revival of bipartisan efforts to regulate these pharmaceutical intermediaries. PBMs, which negotiate drug prices for insurers and employers, have become a focal point in the broader discussion of healthcare costs. A previous bipartisan agreement to regulate these entities was crafted by Carter and Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) in the last Congress, though it ultimately stalled when the larger spending bill it was attached to faced opposition. The reform efforts enjoy broad support from both parties and the president, making it one of the few areas with potential for bipartisan cooperation. However, new complications have emerged as Republicans consider using PBM regulations to generate savings for their broader policy agenda, potentially requiring up to $880 billion in cost reductions. The path forward remains uncertain, with ongoing debates about whether such reforms would qualify for budget reconciliation and whether using PBM regulations as a funding mechanism could derail bipartisan cooperation. Meanwhile, stakeholders continue to disagree on the impact of additional PBM regulation, with pharmaceutical companies arguing that PBMs inflate drug costs while PBMs contend that new regulations would increase prices.

Council on State Biotechnology Associations says NIH funds are a critical component of innovation ecosystem

By Sheran Brown • February 20, 2025
The Council of State Biotechnology Associations (CSBA) has issued a strong warning about proposed cuts to National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding, emphasizing the critical role these grants play in America's biotech innovation ecosystem. The statement, below , comes amid concerns over recent guidance that would reduce NIH funding to key research institutions. ----------------------- “Today, the US biotech industry employs nearly 2.3 million people across the US and is making positive contributions to economic impact and national security across all 50 states. In fact, for every dollar the National Institutes of Health (NIH) contributes to a successful drug, the private sector invests over $65, underscoring the agency’s unparalleled return on investment. As the associations representing the bioscience industry across the nation, the Council on State Biotechnology Associations (CSBA) is concerned by recent guidance that would cut funding provided by the NIH to universities, hospitals, and other institutions that perform critical early-stage research. NIH grant funds are a critical component of our innovation ecosystem. Grants for basic research are the spark that leads to university-driven discoveries, with public-private partnerships and tech transfers that bridge early-stage research to industry-sponsored drug development and ultimately to FDA approved medical advances for hundreds of diseases. While the administration looks for greater efficiency in the use of taxpayer dollars, it cannot be overstated - once scientific innovation moves abroad, it may never return. In the race for scientific innovation around the world, as our adversaries continue to increase government investments in research, we encourage President Trump to follow suit and ensure that we maintain our global leadership in an industry that was created and thrives across the US.”
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