image: Brian Cleary, Assistant Professor, BU Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences
Credit: Boston University
Brian Cleary is an assistant professor in the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences (CDS) and a core faculty member in the Bioinformatics Program. Brian also holds appointments in the Biology and Biomedical Engineering departments, and the Biological Design Center (BDC) at the Rajen Kilachand Center for Integrated Life Sciences & Engineering.
Cleary is the sole principal investigator (PI) on the five-year project, “Measuring and modeling gene expression trajectories: new computational-experimental approaches.”
The research aims to deepen understanding of how gene expression changes over time within single cells—an area central to development, tissue function, and disease progression. Cleary’s approach combines new computationally informed experimental strategies, methods to track RNA across multiple timepoints, and tools to model RNA velocity vector fields. The result will be a more systematic, quantitative understanding of how cell physiology influences “total RNA velocity.”
The project will be housed in Cleary’s Algorithmic Lens on Biology Lab, part of CDS’s growing AI for Science initiative. By uniting computation with experimental design, the lab seeks to build tools that advance both fundamental biology and biomedical applications.
“This integrative approach, blending data science, machine learning, and experimental biology, represents exactly the kind of interdisciplinary innovation that defines CDS,” said Azer Bestavros, Associate Provost for Computing & Data Sciences. “Brian’s work not only pushes the boundaries of computational biology but also exemplifies how data science can accelerate discovery in the life sciences.”
The NIH award provides $550,000 in its first year, with a total of $2.25 million committed over five years. The project earned exceptional review scores, underscoring its significance and potential impact.
Cleary joined BU in 2022 as assistant professor in Computing and Data Sciences and is a core faculty member in the Bioinformatics Program. He also holds appointments in the Biology and Biomedical Engineering departments, as well as the Biological Design Center (BDC) at the Rajen Kilachand Center for Integrated Life Sciences & Engineering.