Project Grant R35GM162106

Federal Project Grant Award Summary

Sanford Research received a $456,500 Project Grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) under the Biomedical Research and Research Training program (CFDA 93.859), effective March 1, 2026, through January 31, 2031. The award supports fundamental research on nucleocytoplasmic compartmentalization and the regulation of the nuclear envelope, focusing on how this specialized cellular structure protects and organizes the genome while facilitating critical cellular processes. The research builds upon the recipient's prior work developing proximity labeling tools to study protein-protein interactions, identifying new nuclear envelope constituents, and characterizing nuclear envelope rupture repair mechanisms and their dysfunction in progeria-associated diseases.

The funded research activities include developing and applying new assessment tools to evaluate both short- and long-term consequences of nuclear envelope ruptures, investigating when and where these ruptures occur during development, normal tissue use, and injury responses, and advancing understanding of the mechanisms underlying nuclear envelope-associated progeria. The project also expands upon prior discoveries regarding variable rates of regulated nucleocytoplasmic transport across nuclear pore complexes and how cellular energy levels impact critical processes such as RNA export and protein translation. These research outputs directly support NIGMS's mission to increase understanding of biological processes and establish the foundation for advances in disease diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.