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The Eisenberg Family Depression Center is excited to welcome the 2025-26 Research Incubator Program cohort. This talented group of promising early-career University of Michigan researchers is ready to take on essential issues in depression and mental health.

The Research Incubator program, which is a key part of the Center's Data & Design Core, uses existing data to help researchers make vital discoveries faster and more efficiently. The new cohort will receive research support, including help with statistical analysis, project management, and mentorship from experienced experts. Their projects will explore new research questions about the connection between mental and physical health.

“We are excited to welcome three outstanding, interdisciplinary scholars to our Research Incubator program,” said Briana Mezuk, Ph.D., faculty co-lead of the Data & Design Core. “Our team looks forward to partnering with these exceptional investigators on innovative, impactful research that seeks to enhance the well-being of individuals and communities affected by depression and other mental health conditions. It is especially important to support early-career investigators as they leverage existing datasets and develop skills in disseminating their findings—ensuring that new insights can make a meaningful difference in practice and policy.”

Meet the new Research Incubator cohort 

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Alexander Chaitoff, M.D., M.P.H., assistant professor, Internal Medicine

Project title: Trajectories of Depression Screening Outcomes and Correlates with Improvement in a Longitudinal Cohort 

Dr. Chaitoff is an assistant professor of Internal Medicine and a research scientist at the VA of Ann Arbor. As an implementation scientist, his research interests have focused on medication safety in older adults, with a more recent focus on mental health. Using data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), his Incubator project will examine the longitudinal trajectories and predictors of people who move from screening positive to negative for depression, with a particular focus on the time periods before and after passage of the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion, to determine if we were better at treating depression in the ACA period. 

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Annelise Madison, Ph.D., assistant professor, Department of Psychology

Project title: Inflammation and Depression Across the Lifespan

Dr. Madison is an assistant professor of psychology and an affiliate faculty member at the Eisenberg Family Depression Center. Her research interests include studying the mind-brain-immune connections as a mechanism for developing preventative interventions for inflammatory disorders. Her Incubator project will utilize data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) to examine population-level trends over time in inflammation, ultraprocessed foods, and depressive symptoms, including anhedonia, fatigue, and hypersomnia. This work aims to generate and inform dietary guidance and public health priorities, particularly as the consumption of ultra-processed foods has greatly increased in recent years. 
 

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Grace Noppert, Ph.D., M.P.H., research assistant professor, Institute for Social Research

Project title: Depression, Disconnection and the Aging Immune System

Dr. Noppert is a Research Assistant Professor at the Survey Research Center within the Institute for Social Research. Her research examines social factors that contribute to a person’s biology, including immune function and aging. Using data from the Health and Retirement study, her project will explore the psychosocial drivers of immunosenescence (the age-related decline in immune function), including depression, social isolation and loneliness. This work will have implications for our understanding of aging-related cognitive outcomes, as immunosenescence is increasingly recognized as a contributor to neurodegenerative disease. Identifying psychological factors that accelerate immunosenescence may reveal new opportunities for intervention and prevention.

Applications to join the next Research Incubator cohort will open in early 2026. Learn more about our program.