Erin Huiting received 2026 LSRF funding award
Charlotte, North Carolina, August 1, 2026 — The Life Sciences Research Foundation (LSRF) today announced funding awards for 33 early-career postdoctoral researchers across all areas of the life sciences. This record-breaking class is the largest in LSRF’s history, making 2026 a truly historic year for the Foundation. This milestone was made possible through the extraordinary generosity and continued partnership of LSRF’s sponsors, whose investment in exceptional early-career scientists is helping shape the future of biomedical research. Over the next three years, these researchers will investigate some of the most compelling unanswered questions in the life sciences and address critical challenges in human health. Funding begins August 1, 2026.
“Don Brown, founder of the organization, came up with the format of LSRF as the best way to produce great science: get bold and creative leaders in all fields of biology to identify the best young postdoctoral scientists and then fund their creative, ambitious plans,” said Douglas Koshland, LSRF President. The 2026 awardees join more than 800 scientists who have received postdoctoral awards from LSRF since 1983. All current awardees are invited to meet annually to share their research and connect with peers working in fields distinct from their own, broadening their scientific training beyond their immediate specialty.
Each 2026 awardee receives $85,000 per year: $79,000 for salary and $6,000 as a research allowance. This structure gives postdocs hands-on experience managing a research budget and the freedom to pursue bolder, more independent, and more interdisciplinary research. LSRF finalists are chosen annually by the organization’s Peer Review Committee from a pool of more than 850 applications. Sponsors then select the finalists they wish to fund from this peer-reviewed group. Proposals are accepted across the following science categories: Biochemistry, Cancer Biology, Cell Biology, Chemistry, Computational Biology, Developmental Biology, Immunology, Microbiology, Molecular Biology, Neurobiology, Organismal, Population & Evolutionary Biology, Physiology, Plant Biology, Structural Biology, and Virology.
Our 2026 LSRF Awardees
Life Sciences Research Foundation
Kaitlin Allen, Ph.D., LSRF Fellow, Sponsored by a Philanthropic Partner:
Proposal entitled “Learning from Nature's Extremes: Decoding Marine Mammal Iron Tolerance to Reveal Mechanisms of Cellular Resilience,” University of Maryland Center for Environmental Sciences, laboratory of Dr. Jennifer Burns. Dr. Allen's Ph.D. was received from the University of California, Berkeley.
Erik Bao, Ph.D., Merck & Co., Inc. Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Dissecting the molecular mechanisms of breast cancer initiation in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers,” Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Inc., laboratory of Dr. Joan Brugge and Dr. Eliezer Van Allen. Dr. Bao's Ph.D. was received from Harvard Medical School.
Anusha Bishop, Ph.D., Simons Foundation International Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Predicting the future of gene flow in a changing ocean,” University of California, Davis, laboratory of Dr. Rachael Bay. Dr. Bishop's Ph.D. was received from the University of California, Berkeley.
Mahima Bose, Ph.D., Shurl and Kay Curci Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Unveiling Direct Retinal Neuron-Vessel Interfaces: A New Basis for Neurovascular Coupling,” University of California, San Francisco, laboratory of Dr. Xin Duan. Dr. Bose's Ph.D. was received from the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.
Siyuan Du, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Dissecting Heterochromatin Structure and Function via Cryo-Electron Tomography,” University of California, San Francisco, laboratory of Dr. Geeta Narlikar. Dr. Du's Ph.D. was received from Stanford University.
Daichi Hayakawa, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Programmable spatiotemporal behaviors in nucleic acid systems powered by a temperature gradient,” California Institute of Technology, laboratory of Dr. Erik Winfree. Dr. Hayakawa's Ph.D. was received from Brandeis University.
Erin Huiting, Ph.D., Simons Foundation International Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Discovery of new innate immune proteins conserved across the plant kingdom,” University of California, Davis, laboratory of Dr. Pamela Ronald. Dr. Huiting's Ph.D. was received from University of California, San Francisco.
Jean Jacobs, Ph.D., Valhalla Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Decoding and Restoring Lysosome-dependent Mitochondrial Turnover to combat Neurodegeneration,” University of California, Berkeley, laboratory of Dr. Roberto Zoncu. Dr. Jacobs' Ph.D. was received from Université catholique de Louvain.
Chase Kayrouz, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Development of CT cloning and CARVER, two DNA manipulation tools to accelerate heterologous expression and engineering of natural product pathways,” The Rockefeller University, laboratory of Dr. Sean Brady. Dr. Kayrouz's Ph.D. was received from Princeton University.
Joseph Kreitz, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Investigating the role of microbial contractile injection systems (CISs) in human health and disease,” Boston Children's Hospital, laboratory of Dr. Min Dong. Dr. Kreitz's Ph.D. was received from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Ellen Lesser, Ph.D., Bachrach Family Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Determining developmental bases of neuronal electrical specialization: ion channels and electrical activity,” University of Chicago, laboratory of Dr. Ellie Heckscher. Dr. Lesser's Ph.D. was received from University of Washington.
Kevin Lin, Ph.D., MacMillan Family Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Targeting multiple myeloma through the midnolin-proteasome pathway,” Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Inc., laboratory of Dr. Xin Gu. Dr. Lin's Ph.D. was received from Duke University School of Medicine.
Jack Chun-Ting Liu, Ph.D., Simons Foundation International Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Molecular evolution of butterfly adaptations to plant toxins,” University of California, Berkeley, laboratory of Dr. Noah Whiteman. Dr. Liu's Ph.D. was received from Stanford University.
Tara McIntyre, Ph.D., LSRF Fellow, Sponsored by a Philanthropic Partner:
Proposal entitled “Mechanisms and consequences of immune aging in reproduction,” University of California, San Francisco, laboratory of Dr. Diana Laird. Dr. McIntyre's Ph.D. was received from University of California, San Francisco.
Nicholas Michelson, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Multi-scale investigation of plasticity and targeted reorganization of cortical auditory circuits mediated by psilocybin,” Johns Hopkins University, laboratory of Dr. Patrick Kanold. Dr. Michelson's Ph.D. was received from the University of British Columbia.
Patrick Monari, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Genetic and neural substrates of natural variation in juvenile play,” University of Pennsylvania, laboratory of Dr. Juan Ignacio Sanguinetti-Scheck. Dr. Monari's Ph.D. was received from University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Sang Hyun Park, Ph.D., Welch Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Enhancing Chiral Light-Molecule Interactions with Surface Plasmons in Twisted Atomic Bilayers,” The University of Texas at Austin, laboratory of Dr. Junyeong Ahn. Dr. Park's Ph.D. was received from University of Minnesota.
Youngseon Park, Ph.D., Valhalla Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Principles of interface polyspecificity of the IgG Fc domain learned with structure-guided protein language models,” Stanford University, laboratory of Dr. Peter Kim. Dr. Park's Ph.D. was received from Harvard University.
Edrees (Eddie) Rashan, Ph.D., Shurl and Kay Curci Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Investigating the impact of stromal lipoproteins on brain metastases,” Massachusetts Institute of Technology, laboratory of Dr. Matthew Vander Heiden. Dr. Rashan's Ph.D. was received from University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Zhongqing Ren, Ph.D., GSK Fellow:
Proposal entitled “A tri-partite mechanism of Smc5/6 chromosomal association,” Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, laboratory of Dr. Xiaolan Zhao. Dr. Ren's Ph.D. was received from Indiana University Bloomington.
Jinyan Rui, Ph.D., Welch Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Innovating Chemical Biology Tools for Proximity Labeling,” The University of Texas at Austin, laboratory of Dr. Yi Lu. Dr. Rui's Ph.D. was received from Johns Hopkins University.
Omid Saleh Ziabari, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Resolving the interspecific genotype-phenotype landscape in Drosophila,” University of Pittsburgh, laboratory of Dr. Mark Rebeiz. Dr. Saleh Ziabari's Ph.D. was received from the University of Rochester.
Ayelet Sarel, Ph.D., LSRF Fellow, Sponsored by a Philanthropic Partner:
Proposal entitled “Neural mechanisms of social decision-making in Drosophila,” Princeton University, laboratory of Dr. Mala Murthy. Dr. Sarel's Ph.D. was received from the Weizmann Institute of Science.
Danica Schmidtke, Ph.D., Bachrach Family Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Investigating the impacts of IBD on gut bacteriophage persistence and genomic structural variation,” Duke University, laboratory of Dr. Raphael H. Valdivia. Dr. Schmidtke's Ph.D. was received from Stanford University.
Jenny Seo, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Unveiling the spatial landscape of thousands of viral proteins,” Harvard Medical School, laboratory of Dr. Shira Weingarten-Gabbay. Dr. Seo's Ph.D. was received from Seoul National University.
Kayla Simanek, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “The regulation and role of phenotype variant subpopulations in Vibrio vulnificus skin infections,” Indiana University Bloomington, laboratory of Dr. Julia van Kessel. Dr. Simanek's Ph.D. was received from State University of New York at Albany.
Indranil Singh, Ph.D., Valhalla Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Characterization and modulation of enhancer kinetics in chronic psychosocial stress-induced myelopoiesis,” Broad Institute, laboratory of Dr. Jason Daniel Buenrostro. Dr. Singh's Ph.D. was received from University of Barcelona.
Patrick Smith, Ph.D., Shurl and Kay Curci Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Regulation of form and function in the human placenta,” Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Inc., laboratory of Dr. Amy Lee. Dr. Smith's Ph.D. was received from University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Gabriel Tofani, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Microbial signals maintain circadian feeding to promote metabolic health,” Monell Chemical Senses Center, laboratory of Dr. Guillaume de Lartigue. Dr. Tofani's Ph.D. was received from University College Cork.
Shomik Verma, Ph.D., Welch Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Thermally-robust, low-work-function thermionic emitters based on aligned OH functionalized MXenes,” Rice University, laboratory of Dr. James Tour. Dr. Verma's Ph.D. was received from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
James Warner, Ph.D., Coefficient Giving Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Evolutionary trajectories and molecular drivers of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus,” Harvard Medical School, laboratory of Dr. David Rudner. Dr. Warner's Ph.D. was received from Harvard University.
Jeremy Yeaton, Ph.D., Valhalla Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Understanding the neural basis of semantic encoding to build a language neuroprosthesis,” University of California, Davis, laboratory of Dr. Sergey Stavisky. Dr. Yeaton's Ph.D. was received from University of California, Irvine.
Feng Yuan, Ph.D., Robertson Foundation Fellow:
Proposal entitled “Endocytic Condensates as Regulators of Receptor Trafficking in Human Cardiomyocytes and Endothelial Cells,” University of California, Berkeley, laboratory of Dr. David Drubin. Dr. Yuan's Ph.D. was received from The University of Texas at Austin.
About Life Sciences Research Foundation
LSRF was founded in 1981 by the late Dr. Donald D. Brown and announced its first class of awardees in 1983. Each year, the foundation seeks support for its finalists from individuals, companies, and foundations. The scientists serving as LSRF Officers, Advisory Board members, and Peer Review Committee members all do so without monetary compensation. For more information about the Life Sciences Research Foundation, visit lsrf.org.
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