Past Awardees

The principal investigators and their projects are:

Serdar Bulun, Chair, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, John J. Sciarra Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology Professor, Obstetrics and Gynecology (Reproductive Science in Medicine), Obstetrics and Gynecology (Reproductive Endo and Infertility) Feinberg School of Medicine.
Co-principal investigator: Ping Yin (Feinberg School of Medicine)

Discovery and development of first-in-class TDO2 inhibitors for uterine fibroid treatment  

Brandon  Jutras, Associate Professor, Microbiology-Immunology, Feinberg School of Medicine.
Co-principal investigator: Saadman Ahmad and Osamudiamen Ebohon (Feinberg School of Medicine)

A rapid, at home test to diagnose acute Lyme disease

Shana Kelley,  President of the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Chicago, Neena B. Schwartz Professor of Chemistry and Biomedical Engineering, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics

Development of a next-generation implantable sensor for continuous monitoring of protein biomarkers related to diabetes    

Bonnie Martin-Harris, Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs; Alice Gabrielle Twight Professor
Co-principal investigator: Ying Wu (McCormick School of Engineering)

AI-Assisted MBSImP Scoring: Enhancing Accuracy, Reliability, Interpretability, and Clinical Integration  

Elizabeth McNally,  Director, Center for Genetic Medicine, Elizabeth J. Ward Professor of Genetic Medicine, Professor, Medicine (Cardiology), Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics
Co-principal investigator: Alexis Demonbreun (Feinberg School of Medicine)

Anti-LTBP4 antibodies for the treatment of cardiac fibrosis  

 Milan Mrksich,  the Henry Wade Rogers Professor of Biomedical Engineering, professor of chemistry and professor of cell and developmental biology, McCormick School of Engineering, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, and Feinberg School of Medicine
Co-principal investigator: William Klein (Weinberg College of Arts and Science)

MegaMolecules Targeting Amyloid Beta Oligomers as Therapeutics and Diagnostics for Alzheimer’s Disease 

Miriam Novack, Assistant Professor, Medical Social Sciences (Outcome and Measurement Science) Feinberg School of Medicine.
Co-principal investigator: Stephanie Young (Feinberg School of Medicine)

Building the Remote Baby Toolbox: A tablet-to-smartphone developmental assessment  

Jonathan Rivnay, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, Director of PhD Admissions of Biomedical Engineering

Durable biohybrid cell therapies enabled by electrocatalytic oxygen generation  

Vipul Shukla, Assistant Professor, Cell and Developmental Biology, Feinberg School of Medicine.

MASS-CAR: A universal platform for cancer immunotherapy  

The principal investigators and their projects are:

Karan Ahuja, the Lisa Wissner-Slivka and Benjamin Slivka Assistant Professor of Computer Science, McCormick School of Engineering.
The Human API: Democratizing Motion Capture to unleash the Next Generation of Consumer Health Sensing at Scale.

Bharath Chandrasekaran, the Ralph and Jean Sundin Endowed Professor, Department Chair, Communication Sciences and Disorders, School of Communication.
Co-principal investigators: Jacie McHaney (School of Communication) and Sumit Dhar (School of Communication)
Neura-Speech: Bridging the Diagnostic Gap for Hidden Hearing Loss Through Electrophysiological Speech Markers.

Joseph R. Leventhal, Fowler McCormick Professor of Surgery, Surgery (Organ Transplantation) Feinberg School of Medicine.
Co-principal investigators:  James Mathew (Feinberg School of Medicine) and Hong Xu (Feinberg School of Medicine)
Harnessing regulatory T cells in prior organ transplant recipients:
establishing the basis to achieve delayed tolerance induction.

Aline Martin, Associate Professor, Medicine (Nephrology and Hypertension), Feinberg School of Medicine.
Co-principal investigator: Valentin David (Feinberg School of Medicine)
DMPI1 therapy for Chronic Kidney Disease – Mineral Bone Disorder (CKD-MBD).

William A. Muller, Janardan K. Reddy, MD Professor of Pathology, Professor, Pathology (Experimental Pathology), Pathology (Autopsy), Feinberg School of Medicine.
Co-principal investigators: Daniel C. Lee (Feinberg School of Medicine) and David P. Sullivan (Feinberg School of Medicine)
A First-in-Class Drug to Block Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury After Myocardial Infarction.

Gabriel Rocklin, Assistant Professor, Pharmacology, Feinberg School of Medicine.
A New Platform to Discover Cell-Penetrating Miniprotein Therapeutics.

Timothy L. Sita, Assistant Professor, Radiation Oncology, Feinberg School of Medicine.
Electrical Modulation to Permit Brigimadlin Activity in Glioblastoma.

Xiaoyu Xhang, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, Weinberg College of Arts & Sciences.
Co-principal investigator: Jaehyuk (Jack) Choi (Feinberg School of Medicine)
A Universal Approach to Drive the Immune Recognition of Cancer Cells.

The principal investigators and their projects are:

Dr. Bradley Allen, chief of cardiovascular and thoracic imaging and assistant professor of radiology, Feinberg School of Medicine
Co-principal investigators: Michael Markl (Feinberg, McCormick), Ulas Bagci (Feinberg), and Ann Ragin (Feinberg)
The project will leverage deep learning to measure aorta blood flow in patients at high risk for thoracic aorta aneurysms, a highly prevalent condition impacting more than 500,000 people annually. In addition to driving beneficial health outcomes, the project will use AI in conjunction with widely available, lower-cost CT or MRI scans to replace highly specialized 4D flow MRI with a plan to seek FDA clearance for the technology.

Irina Balyasnikova, professor of neurological surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine
This research targets glioblastoma, an incurable brain cancer with a dismal survival rate. By developing a new targeted intervention (tri-specific T cell engager) that “weaponizes” the immune system to attack cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue, the researchers aim for eventual clinical translation.

Navdeep Chandel, the David W. Cugell, MD, Professor of Medicine in the division of pulmonary and critical care, Feinberg School of Medicine
This proposal uses gene therapy to engineer the yeast protein NDI1 to regenerate NAD+, which is impaired in many primary mitochondrial diseases, including neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s. The researchers will also develop novel AI-designed proteins with the aim of patenting these for technological commercialization.

Shana Kelley, the Neena B. Schwartz Professor of Chemistry and Biomedical Engineering, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences and McCormick School of Engineering
This research project is pursuing a first-in-class, highly efficient, nontoxic intracellular protein delivery system with the potential to fight cancer, neurodegenerative disease, heart disease, and autoimmune disease. The technique employs selective target degradation and superior ease of use to maximize therapeutic potential with the goal of clinical translation.

Milan Mrksich, the Henry Wade Rogers Professor of Biomedical Engineering, professor of chemistry and professor of cell and developmental biology, McCormick School of Engineering, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, and Feinberg School of Medicine
Co-principal investigator: William Klein (Weinberg)
This project aims to develop highly specific and effective diagnostics and potential therapeutics to monitor and treat Alzheimer’s disease, a progressive disorder with a substantial societal impact. The research targets the neurotoxic molecules (amyloid beta oligomers) that cause the disease. ModuMab Therapeutics, a recent Northwestern startup, is commercializing this approach to new therapeutics that could broadly impact the immunotherapy field. 

Ken Paller, Director of the Cognitive Neuroscience Program, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences
Co-principal investigator: Phyllis Zee (Feinberg)
This research aims to improve sleep quality through innovative methods for sleep-physiology monitoring and subtle sensory stimulation based on biofeedback and AI training. Given its promise to help reduce insomnia and bolster health, the project has significant commercialization potential.

Robert Vassar, professor of neurology and of cell and developmental biology, Feinberg School of Medicine
Co-principal investigator: Katherine Sadleir (Feinberg)
This project will develop a disease-modifying therapy to protect and heal the brain’s membranes from Alzheimer’s disease damage, stopping the disease in its tracks. The effort targets a fundamental cellular mechanism to combat the looming Alzheimer’s epidemic, which is anticipated to afflict some 14 million U.S. citizens by 2050. If the technique is successful, the investigators will launch a start-up venture based on this technology.

Xinlong Wang, research assistant professor, Center for Advanced Regenerative Engineering, McCormick School of Engineering
Co-principal investigators: Guillermo Ameer (McCormick) and John Rogers (McCormick, Feinberg)
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S., where about 5% of the population suffers from myocardial infarction. This project looks to treat myocardial infarction by developing a minimally invasive injectable bioresorbable cellular cardiac patch with a built-in cardiac sensor and stimulator. This research could eventually be deployed in clinical settings to address an urgent societal health problem.  

If you have questions, please email ryanrafund@northwestern.edu.