Federal Grant Award Summary

Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) received a Project Grant award of $121,667 from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) under the Oral Diseases and Disorders Research program (CFDA 93.121) for the period April 1, 2026 through March 31, 2028. The award supports the development and validation of novel granular hydrogel platforms for theranostic management of periodontitis, an oral inflammatory disease caused by oral microbiota dysbiosis. The research delivers three primary products: (1) diagnostic granular hydrogels comprised of thiolated chitosan microgels functionalized with matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and -9 susceptible peptides for precise disease diagnosis; (2) therapeutic granular hydrogels encapsulating thymol and zinc-substituted hydroxyapatite for multimodal disease treatment; and (3) integrated theranostic granular hydrogels capable of performing simultaneous diagnosis and multimodal therapy.

This project addresses unmet clinical needs in periodontitis management by developing biomaterial platforms that simultaneously target multiple disease factors—bacteria, biofilm, and inflammatory molecules—while enabling real-time disease analysis. The granular hydrogel approach offers advantages over conventional bulk hydrogels by functioning as heterogeneous carriers for encapsulation and surface functionalization of therapeutic and diagnostic agents. Research activities include synthesis, characterization, and validation of the proposed hydrogel systems to advance prevention and treatment strategies for oral inflammatory diseases.