New way to map senescent cells in human tissues without relying on cell boundaries
Official title: Admin Supplement: Minnesota Tissue Mapping Center for Senescent Cells:Segmentation- Independent Spatial Mapping of Senescent Cells in Minnesota TMC Datasets
Funded at University of Minnesota · NIH-11518544 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A grant to Minnesota researchers aims to improve how we map aging cells in human tissues using segmentation-free methods so scientists can better understand where senescent cells live.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Minnesota NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Minneapolis, United States) |
| Project start | September 30, 2021 |
| Project end | August 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $264,412 |
| NIH project number | 3U54AG076041-05S2 |
| Project ID | NIH-11518544 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are adults whose health may be affected by aging-related tissue changes and who have tissue samples suitable for spatial omics analysis.
✕Less likely to help
Patients without access to high-quality tissue samples or who do not participate in tissue mapping studies may see limited direct benefit.
What this research studies
This project builds on the UMN Tissue Mapping Center work by adding advanced analytics that don’t depend on cell boundaries to identify senescent cells in tissues like fat, muscle, liver, and ovary. It will combine segmentation-free tools from UMICH with existing data to create a unified pipeline that improves sensitivity, reproducibility, and cross-study consistency. The effort includes harmonizing data, visualizing results, and sharing methods so researchers can more accurately map aging cell states at molecular resolution.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, patients could benefit from faster, more reliable insights into aging-related tissue changes that influence disease risk and treatment strategies.
How similar studies have gone: Previous segmentation-independent approaches have shown promise in improving accuracy, and this project aims to extend and harmonize those methods across tissues.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Niedernhofer, Laura Jane — University of Minnesota
- Study coordinator: Niedernhofer, Laura Jane
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.