Federal Grant Award Summary

Arizona State University received a $783,649 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's Division of Environmental Biology under the Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074), effective June 1, 2026, through May 31, 2031. This CAREER award supports fundamental research investigating how subtle environmental changes influence evolutionary outcomes in organisms, with particular relevance to understanding adaptive responses in drug-resistant pathogens, agricultural systems, and ecosystem resilience. The research employs massively parallel experimental evolution using the model organism Saccharomyces cerevisiae (baker's yeast), tracking thousands of uniquely barcoded yeast lineages across fine-resolution temperature gradients to quantify how adaptive mutations respond to environmental variation. Key research deliverables include characterization of the genetic basis of adaptation and fitness effect distributions across environmental conditions, as well as high-resolution fitness measurements of adaptive lineages.

Beyond core research activities, the award integrates education and outreach components designed to advance workforce development and scientific literacy. The project will develop a Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) providing hands-on training in experimental evolution to undergraduate students, while public outreach activities will disseminate findings to broader audiences. All research data and analytical tools will be openly shared with the scientific community, supporting reproducibility and collaborative advancement of knowledge in evolutionary biology and stress response mechanisms.