Iowa State Awards 2026 Presidential Interdisciplinary Research Seed Grants to Three Innovative Research Teams
Susan McNicholl, Office of the Vice President for Research
Posted Feb 25, 2026
Advancing Health Equity Through Food‑as‑Medicine
Cardiovascular‑kidney‑metabolic (CKM) syndrome is a growing public health concern, especially in rural and economically disadvantaged communities. This complex condition is caused by the overlapping effects of diabetes, obesity, heart disease and kidney disease. Poor diet quality drives much of the risk associated with CKM, yet many individuals in this population have limited access to affordable, nutritious foods.
The project led by Elizabeth Lefferts, assistant professor of Kinesiology and Health, Lyndi Buckingham‑Schutt, assistant professor of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Alison Phillips, professor of Psychology, and Katherine Harris‑Lagoudakis, assistant professor of Economics aims to address this challenge by evaluating whether produce prescription programs—monthly stipends for fruits and vegetables—can reduce cardiovascular risk for adults with Stage 2 CKM syndrome.
Using a three‑month randomized controlled trial with 90 participants, the team will compare standard produce prescriptions, an enhanced version paired with a behavioral nutrition program, and usual medical care. Their study will assess changes in cardiovascular risk, diet quality, food security, motivation for behavior change, and long‑term adherence to healthier eating.
If successful, this work could help solidify produce prescriptions as a scalable “food‑as‑medicine” tool and pave the way for integrating them into healthcare benefits for high‑risk rural populations.
“This funding gives us the foundation to build the evidence base we need,” said Buckingham-Schutt. “Produce prescriptions show real promise, but we need rigorous data to demonstrate how they reduce cardiovascular risk and improve access to healthy food. This project lets us take that critical next step.”
Building a Ferroelectronics Research Hub for Next‑Generation AI Hardware
A second 2026 PIRS award supports an initiative to advance ferroelectronics, that could dramatically improve the speed, energy efficiency, and data‑processing capabilities of artificial intelligence hardware.
Led by Meng Lu, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, the interim director of Microelectronics Research Center (MRC), the interdisciplinary team includes Vikram Dalal, distinguished professor of electrical and computer engineering; Cheng Wang, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering; Xiaoli Tan, professor of materials science and engineering; and Chandan Setty, assistant professor of physics. Together, they aim to establish a world‑class research program focused on the growth and characterization of high-performance ferroelectric materials at MRC.
By studying materials at the atomic scale, engineering new device architectures, and uncovering new physical effects, the team aims to unlock next-generation technologies, ranging from in-memory computing and ultra-dense data storage beyond magnetic limits to hardware capable of executing AI workloads directly on-device. The project will build on ISU’s strengths in materials science and theoretical physics, while leveraging the capabilities of the MRC facility. The team will also lay critical groundwork to strengthen industry partnerships with data storage solution companies.
“Microelectronics is fundamentally built on high-performance materials,” said Professor Lu. “The MRC brings together engineers, physicists, and material scientists to ensure that ferroelectric materials truly enable next-generation devices.”
Designing Next‑Generation Peptide Adjuvants for Personalized Nanovaccines
A third PIRS‑funded project focuses on revolutionizing vaccine design and delivery. Led by Jing Wang, assistant professor of chemical and biological engineering, in collaboration with Balaji Narasimhan, distinguished professor of chemical and biological engineering and director of the Nanovaccine Institute, and Michael Wannemuehler, professor of veterinary microbiology and preventive medicine, the team aims to identify new peptide‑based vaccine adjuvants—substances that boost the immune response—derived from endogenous proteins.
Unlike traditional adjuvants, which are often made from pathogen‑derived molecules, the team’s approach focuses on small leucine‑rich proteoglycans (SLRPs), a family of human proteins known to activate immune cells. By mapping the functional segments of these proteins and displaying them on engineered polypeptide nanoparticles, the researchers will test their ability to safely and effectively stimulate immune defenses.
The team’s long‑term goal is to create personalized nanovaccines that can be optimized for different immune states, including individuals with weakened immune systems. This project represents a new research direction for Wang and leverages Iowa State’s nationally recognized Nanovaccine Institute.
If successful, the work could open an entirely new class of safe, tunable adjuvants that improve the next generation of vaccines for influenza and other infectious diseases.
“As an early-career faculty member, I am honored to join the Nanovaccine Institute community and to have initiated multiple collaborations with colleagues here. In this PIRS project, Dr. Narasimhan, Dr. Wannemuehler, and I will combine our complementary expertise to engineer personalized vaccine adjuvants with tunable immune-boosting activity,” said Wang. “This PIRS award will allow us to complete in vivo validation using a model antigen and position the project for next-stage federal funding to advance vaccines against influenza and other high-impact viral threats.”
About the PIRS Program
The Presidential Interdisciplinary Research Seed Grant Program is open to full‑time, tenured/tenure‑eligible, and term faculty across all disciplines. Awards of up to $50,000 per team support early‑stage interdisciplinary projects that require preliminary data collection, new collaborations, or partnership development to become competitive for external grants.
For more information about the PIRS program, visit the Office of the Vice President for Research website.