2023-2024 Awards & Grants Funding Cycle Begins

Newly Funded Research Adds to Scope of Lung Health Contributions

A centerpiece of the American Lung Association Research Institute is our Awards & Grants Program, which supports the best and brightest scientists who are helping create a world free from lung disease. For more than a century, our Awards & Grants Program has advanced medical and scientific research to improve the quality of life for lung disease patients and their families.

A new funding cycle means new opportunities for scientific progress! To learn more about our key awards and grants funding, visit: Lung.org/awards

Spotlight on Awardees

With 48 projects receiving funding as part of this latest cycle, we are currently funding more than 115 awards. Here are a few highlights of the newly funded projects. Check back in October for our full list of 2023-2024 awardees!

Priyadharshini Devarajan is shown from the shoulder up. She has shoulder length black hair and is wearing a teal shirt.

Priyadharshini Devarajan, PhD
University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School
What Precursors Become Lung-Resident CD4 Memory that Protect Against Respiratory Infections or Cause Lung Pathology?
Catalyst Award 

This project will give us new insights into designing vaccines that efficiently induce protection, while minimizing inadvertent lung damage. It will also inform interventions to reduce lung damage in patients with severe respiratory infections.

Lucas Ferrari de Andrade is shown from the shoulder up. He is wearing a grey and blue plaid shirt. He has short brown hair and light skin.

Lucas Ferrari de Andrade, PhD
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Promoting Natural Killer Cell-driven Immunity Against Lung Cancer
Lung Cancer Discovery Award 

The study hopes to generate new information about how to harness the immune system to inhibit lung cancer, ideally to help bring a new antibody treatment modality to market.

Katharina Maisel is shown from the shoulder up, she is wearing a red shirt with a gold necklace. She has short brown hair and wears glasses.

Katharina Maisel, PhD
University of Maryland-College Park
Exploring Adjuvant Immunotherapy to Treat Lymphangioleiomyomatosis Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Innovation Award

Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM), a rare disease that causes cystic destruction of the lungs, currently lacks treatment options. This proposed work will provide pre-clinical data to serve as the foundation for translating the findings into a potential treatment.

Mohsan Saeed is shown from the shoulder up. He is wearing a blue suit jacket and white shirt with a red tie. He has short dark hair and wears glasses.

Mohsan Saeed, PhD
Trustees of Boston University
Deciphering the Determinants of Coronaviral Tissue Tropism
COVID-19 & Emerging Respiratory Viruses Research Award 

While some coronaviruses infect lung cells and others establish infection in the upper respiratory tract, this project aims to better understand the molecular mechanisms that define the preference of coronaviruses for each of these cell types.

Stephen Schworer is shown from the shoulder up. He is wearing a light blue shirt and blue tie. He has short light brown hair.

Stephen Schworer, MD, PhD
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Mucus Plugging and Regional Heterogeneity in Asthmatic Small Airways
Allergic Respiratory Disease Research Award 

This project will study two critical aspects of asthma that may be targets for future treatments: 1) blockages in the airway caused by mucus; and 2) and changes in the lungs’ small airways.

Amanda Wilson is shown from the waist up. She is wearing a copper colored shirt and teal necklace. She has chest-length dark brown hair and wears glasses.

Amanda Wilson, PhD
Arizona Board of Regents, University of Arizona
Protecting Asthmatic Children’s Health by Reducing Respiratory Viral Infections in Schools: A Novel Risk Analysis Tool
Catalyst Award 

The goal of this project is to create a risk calculator tool for school health personnel to support real-time and inexpensive decision-making regarding interventions to reduce spread of respiratory viral diseases like the flu, RSV and COVID-19.

Page last updated: August 7, 2023

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