A centerpiece of the American Lung Association Research Institute is our Awards & Grants Program, which supports the best and brightest scientists helping to create a world free from lung disease. For more than 120 years, our Awards & Grants Program has advanced medical and scientific research to improve the quality of life for lung disease patients and their families.
A new funding cycle means new opportunities for scientific progress! To learn more about our key awards and grants funding, visit: Lung.org/awards
Spotlight on Awardees
With 46 projects receiving funding as part of this latest cycle, we are currently funding a total of 130 awards. Here are a few highlights of the newly funded researchers and their projects.
Carla Concepcion, PhD, Columbia University
Lung Cancer Discovery Award: Finding Ways to Make SMARCA Therapy Even Better at Fighting Lung Cancer
Adapting animal models to closely mimic SMARCA4-altered lung cancer, known to be aggressive, this project tests the use of the SMARCA2 protein to better understand and improve upon a promising new treatment for patients in need.
Alison G. Lee, MD, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Indoor Air Award: Prenatal Indoor Air Pollution Exposure and Infant Lung Health
By tracking a cohort of pregnant women in Queens, New York, while working with community partners, this project explores how prenatal exposure to indoor air pollution affects lung development and future disease risk.
Kaisen Lin, PhD, Michigan State University
Emerging Respiratory Pathogen Award: Can Cleaning Products Influence Lung Health?
This project investigates how cleaning products influence lung health by studying their effects on airborne viruses and indoor air quality with the goal of identifying safer cleaning practices that protect respiratory health.
Nairrita Majumder, PhD, University of California, Los Angeles
Catalyst Award: Activating Potassium Channels to Protect Against Lung Damage in Pneumonia
Using human lung cells and mouse models, this project tests new compounds that activate TREK-1 potassium channels in hopes of protecting the lungs from damage caused by bacterial pneumonia and oxygen treatment.
Stephen Mein, MD, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Public Health & Public Policy Research Award: Will Cutting Medicare Drug Costs Help Black and Hispanic Adults to Obtain and Use Inhalers?
This project examines how the Inflation Reduction Act’s lower medication costs affect access to inhalers for older adults with asthma and COPD. It also aims to assess whether the policy helps Black and Hispanic adults obtain inhalers for improving their health.
Dawei Sun, PhD, Eli and Edythe L. Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
Catalyst Award: Uncovering the Link Between ARDS and Impaired Regeneration of Alveoli
This project investigates how epigenetic changes hinder alveoli repair in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), a major cause of influenza and COVID-19 deaths. The goal is to uncover new treatment strategies that boost lung regeneration and slow disease progression.
Page last updated: October 8, 2025
