Federal Project Grant Award Summary

Northwestern University's Sponsored Research Division received a $1.41 million project grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of the Director under the Trans-NIH Research Support program (CFDA 93.310), with an award date of May 1, 2026, and completion date of April 30, 2029. The grant funds research to investigate the pathological mechanisms of sulfur mustard gas keratopathy (MGK), a chronic ocular injury resulting from chemical warfare agent exposure. The research focuses on understanding how mustard gas exposure induces harmful autophagy—a cellular degradation process—in corneal tissue and explores the role of Beclin1 protein liberation from the Beclin1-BCL2 complex as a mechanism driving corneal inflammation and tissue damage.

The primary deliverable is fundamental biomedical research aimed at elucidating the molecular pathways underlying MGK-induced corneal pathology, with the long-term objective of identifying therapeutic targets to prevent or reverse the detrimental effects of mustard gas exposure to the eye. Currently, no specific treatments exist for MGK; this research addresses that critical gap by examining why autophagy becomes harmful rather than protective in the corneal tissue context following chemical exposure. The findings are intended to support the development of targeted interventions to block or attenuate the autophagy-mediated corneal inflammation induced by mustard gas exposure.