Recent Research Funding

Our faculty secure major research grants from various National Institutes of Health as well as private sources.

  • Disease progression modeling of bladder cancer. Yijun Sun (Co-Principal Investigator). NIH. $2,500,000. 9/1/2022-8/1/2027.
  • Host and microbial risk factors of oral thrush in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. Yijun Sun (Co-Investigator). NIH. $4,100,000. 7/1/2022-6/1/2027.
  • Protist Oxygen Sensing in Human Disease. Ira Blader (Co-Principal Investigator). NIH/NIAID. $3,190,179. 7/1/2022-6/1/2027.
  • Liposomal Encapsulation Vaccine Design for Pneumococcal Disease in Aged Subjects. Elsa Bou Ghanem (Co-Principal Investigator). NIA. $2,015,365. 8/1/2022-4/1/2027.
  • T Regulatory cell responses in Toxoplasma-infected muscle. Elizabeth Wohlfert (Principal Investigator). NIAID/NIH. $2,445,371. 2/1/2022-3/1/2027.
  • The role of A1 adenosine receptor signaling in the decline of S. pneumoniae killing by neutrophils in vaccinated aged hosts. Elsa Bou Ghanem (Contributor). NIAID-F31. $96,900. 1/1/2023-12/1/2026.
  • MARCH proteins, members of a host protein family that targets HIV. Spyridon Stavrou (Principal Investigator). NIH/NIAID. $1,974,920. 12/1/2021-11/1/2026.
  • Ribosome Heterogeneity in C. neoformans. John Panepinto (Principal Investigator). NIAID / NIH. 8/1/2021-7/1/2026.
  • The role of neutrophils in the age-driven decline in anti-pneumococcal vaccine responses. Elsa Bou Ghanem (Principal Investigator). NIA-R01. $1,684,125. 9/1/2021-5/1/2026.
  • Deciphering hormonal regulation of neutrophil biology. Elsa Bou Ghanem (Co-Investigator). NIA-R01. $2,728,945. 9/1/2022-5/1/2026.
  • The role of neutrophils in the age-driven decline in anti-pneumococcal vaccine responses. Elizabeth Wohlfert (Co-Investigator). NIH. $2,634,726. 9/1/2021-3/1/2026.
  • Lipid Mediated Oral Tolerance. Elizabeth Wohlfert (Co-Principal Investigator). NIH. $2,422,174. 6/1/2022-3/1/2026.
  • Bacterial sialometabolic activity impacts periodontal immunity and microbiota. Yijun Sun (Co-Investigator). NIH. $1,930,340. 9/1/2020-8/1/2025.
  • Advanced computational approaches to delineating dynamic cancer progression processes by using massive static sample data. Yijun Sun (Principal Investigator). NIH. $1,964,300. 4/1/2020-3/1/2025.
  • Developing a Multivalent Particle Vaccine Against TB. Elizabeth Wohlfert (Co-Investigator). NIH. $3,269,992. 4/1/2022-3/1/2025.
  • The role of PMNs and extracellular adenosine in host-resistance against S. pneumoniae / influenza A virus co-infection. Elsa Bou Ghanem (Principal Investigator). NIAID-R21. $419,393. 2/1/2023-1/1/2025.
  • The Organization and Function of the Toxoplasma Daughter Cell Scaffold. Ira Blader (Co-Principal Investigator). NIH. 1/1/2020-12/1/2024.
  • “Alternative Polyadenylation Regulation in Trypanosoma brucei”. Laurie Read (Principal Investigator). NIH. $437,250. 12/1/2022-12/1/2024.
  • LEPS pneumococcal vaccine for aged hosts. Elsa Bou Ghanem (Contributor). Pfizer Robert Austrian Research Award to postdoctoral scholar Manmeet Bhalla. $25,000. 9/1/2022-8/1/2024.
  • Microbial methylglyoxal promotes periodontal inflammation. Yijun Sun (Co-Investigator). NIH. $319,000. 9/1/2022-8/1/2024.