# MOSAIC: Biospecimen Core

> **NIH NIH U54** · MAYO CLINIC ARIZONA · 2024 · $11,020

## Abstract

SUMMARY: BIOSPECIMEN CORE
The major objective of the Biospecimen Core is to obtain, process, image, and analyze glioblastoma (GBM) 
patients’ biopsies for use in both Projects of our Mayo/Columbia CSBC Mathematical Oncology Systems 
Analysis Imaging Center (MOSAIC). Patient biopsies are central to our CSBC’s primary goal: building a 
conceptual framework to understand sensitive response to therapy through the represented tissue states in 
clinical and experimental settings. The duties of the Biospecimen Core are spread across both sites: Mayo 
Clinic Arizona (MCA) and Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC).
The Biospecimen Core will assist the Center by operating under two specific aims. In Aim 1, we collect, process, 
and analyze image-guided biopsies from pre-and post-treatment GBM. For Aim 2, we perform histopathological, 
immunohistochemical (multiplex-IHC), and molecular analyses (bulk RNA-seq, scRNA-seq) of image-guided
biopsies.
The Biospecimen Core will provide support for both projects.
Project 1: Targeting Glioma Tissue States will utilize the RNAseq and single cell sequencing data from the 
biopsies collected and analyzed by the Biospecimen Core to assess the compositional landscape of 
glioblastoma along with the cross-talk between different subgroups that influence phenotype.
Project 2: Imaging the Dynamic Tissue State in Patients In Vivo will utilize the bulk histology and RNAseq 
along with the imaging of the image-localized biopsies collected from the Biospecimen Core. Project 2 will 
also incorporate these histologic and molecular cell lineage data into ML and mechanistic models that map the 
relationship of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features to cellular composition. These data will drive the 
training and validation of machine learning models and the parameterization of mechanistic mathematical 
models. 
The data generated by the Biospecimen Core will be transferred to the Data Integration and Computation 
Core, where it will be stored, further processed including batch correction and atlas alignment, and integrated 
into computational modeling tools.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11186186
- **Project number:** 3U54CA274504-02S1
- **Recipient organization:** MAYO CLINIC ARIZONA
- **Principal Investigator:** Kristin R Swanson
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $11,020
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2023-09-18 → 2028-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11186186

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11186186, MOSAIC: Biospecimen Core (3U54CA274504-02S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-28 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11186186. Licensed CC0.

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