# New Mexico IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE)

> **NIH NIH P20** · NEW MEXICO STATE UNIVERSITY LAS CRUCES · 2024 · $149,555

## Abstract

Project Summary
Improvements in the accuracy, length, throughput, and cost-effectiveness of sequencing
technologies has resulted in a proliferation of multiple high-quality genome assemblies within
many species. These pangenomes have garnered great interest from the research community
because they provide an unbiased representation of sequence preservation and variation within
a species that can not be matched by a single reference genome. The benefits of this
representation are many. For instance, in biomedicine pangenomes can better reveal the
genetic origins of certain diseases, help identify stable vaccine/drug targets, and can better
characterize the evolution of cancers and tissue-specific mutations. However, the software used
to analyze pangenomic data is still relatively new and changing rapidly, resulting in a knowledge
gap between what tools are available and what tools are actually being used for biomedical
research. To address this gap, we have developed a workshop for the New Mexico IDeA
Networks for Biomedical Research Excellence (NM-INBRE) that teaches graduate students and
researchers how to use graphical pangenomics tools for biomedical research. By instructing
students in state-of-the-art pangenomics techniques we are expanding research opportunities
for the students and increasing the number of competitive investigators in the scientific
workforce. Unfortunately, the workshop is not free and it is only taught once annually to a limited
number of students. Furthermore, the workshop uses a private server, requiring students to
install the software in a different computing environment after the workshop to perform their own
analyses. For these reasons, this project will adapt our NM-INBRE pangenomics workshop into
an open-source Cloud Lab Module. Through the module students will learn how to operate in a
preconfigured cloud environment in a cost-effective manner while becoming proficient in
graphical pangenome analysis. The module will be made freely available online via the NIGMS
Sandbox so anyone can work through the module themselves at their own pace. We will use the
module materials to enhance our existing workshop and the materials will be free to use by
anyone in their own curricula. Overall, the goal of the project is to adapt our existing NM-INBRE
pangenomics workshop into a broadly available Cloud Lab Module to further reduce the
pangenomics software knowledge gap while making access to this knowledge more equitable.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11036710
- **Project number:** 3P20GM103451-24S1
- **Recipient organization:** NEW MEXICO STATE UNIVERSITY LAS CRUCES
- **Principal Investigator:** SHELLEY LUSETTI
- **Activity code:** P20 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $149,555
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2001-09-30 → 2029-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11036710

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11036710, New Mexico IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) (3P20GM103451-24S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11036710. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*