# Core D: Biostatistics and Computational Analysis Core

> **NIH NIH P01** · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · 2024 · $141,666

## Abstract

ABSTRACT - Biostatistics and Computational Analysis Core (BCAC)
The Biostatistics and Computational Analysis Core (BCAC) is a critical supporting core for the
proposed project. The BCAC will work closely with all project investigators to meet their
bioinformatic, statistical, and data science needs. By making data Findable, Accessible,
Interoperable and Reusable (FAIR), the BCAC will maximize the impact and optimize the path to
identifying high impact insights on the initial steps of the induction of bNAb precursors, and help
to address the knowledge gap whether vaccine adjuvant-induced innate responses impact bNAb
precursor development and affinity maturation which are expected to inform the development of
new targeted immunomodulatory approaches for HIV vaccine design.
The program will generate a suite of longitudinal data with a broad data types, including
transcriptomics, single cell (sc) RNA-sequencing, immunome analysis by CyTOF, proteome
analysis of soluble immune mediators in plasma, and bacterial presence/abundance in the gut.
Such rich data provides unprecedented opportunities to gain insights into innate responses, but
also creates analytically challenges to dissect underlying mechanisms of bNAb precursor
development, which are intricate with many factors interweaving with each other and jointly
impacting bNAb precursor development. The BCAC investigators are recognized experts in
biostatistics, data integration across multi-omics, and HIV research, which allows them to address
the challenges by providing state-of-the art expertise in a wide range of data science fields. The
core will ensure effective data management and data integration. More importantly, the core will
develop a suite of innovative approaches to integrate longitudinal immune, microbiome, and
molecular signatures to predict the development of bNAb precursors. The sum of the combined
results of Projects and Cores provided by the BACA in this Program will be greater than data
output that could be achieved by each Program component alone. By integrating the data
obtained in Project 1 with microbial signatures identified in Project 2, we expect to make more
precise prediction on bNAb precursor development, as defined by the B Cell Core.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10852984
- **Project number:** 5P01AI178377-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL
- **Principal Investigator:** Fei Zou
- **Activity code:** P01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $141,666
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-06-01 → 2028-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10852984

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10852984, Core D: Biostatistics and Computational Analysis Core (5P01AI178377-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10852984. Licensed CC0.

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