Federal Grant Award Summary

San Diego State University Research Foundation received a $1.05 million project grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) program (CFDA 10.310), effective March 15, 2026, through March 14, 2029. The award supports the development of a comprehensive food protein database designed to predict protein functionalities under various food processing conditions. The primary deliverables include: (1) establishing a structured database by extracting and organizing literature data using artificial intelligence (AI) tools; (2) enhancing the database through integration of high-quality experimental datasets from collaborative studies and molecular dynamics simulations to model protein behavior mechanisms; and (3) building a collaborative network among researchers through standardized methodology promotion and outreach activities to encourage ongoing contributions of new research findings.

This project directly aligns with AFRI's Data Science for Food and Agricultural Systems (DSFAS) priority area, which emphasizes the intersection of data science and AI with agricultural fields to advance U.S. food and agriculture enterprises. The food protein database will serve as an accessible, robust resource to accelerate protein innovation in food product development and improve resource management through better prediction of protein functionalities relevant to food manufacturing and industrial applications.