New Grant Supports Research on RNA-Protein Interactions Significant in Neuronal Behavior

Sept. 9, 2026 — Principal Investigator: Fangyuan Ding, assistant professor of biomedical engineering, UC Irvine

Award: $250,000 over 3 years (October 1, 2026 – September 30, 2029)

Funding Agency: Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) – Air Force Defense Research Sciences Program (Assistance Listing No. 12.800), Department of Defense

Project: Revealing the Binding Kinetics of RNA-Protein Interactions Significant in Neuronal Behavior (Award No. FA9550261B042)

The brain's ability to form memories and process information depends on proteins that bind to RNA molecules inside neurons. With support from the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR), Fangyuan Ding's lab at UC Irvine is developing a new tool to observe these interactions. Using magnetic tweezers — a technique that applies a precisely controlled force to individual molecules — the team will measure how quickly protein-RNA pairs form and how long they last, information that existing methods typically cannot provide simultaneously. The platform is label-free, meaning it won't disturb the molecules under study.

The team will initially focus on human Pumilio-2 (hPUM2), a protein that regulates gene activity in neurons and is linked to memory and learning. The broader platform is designed to work across many DNA- and RNA-binding proteins. Findings could advance basic neuroscience and support applications such as protecting cognitive performance under stress, developing biomarkers for early detection of neurological injury and informing biodefense strategies. The lab also plans to build a publicly accessible database of molecular binding rates for use by the wider research community.

More information: A public listing for this award may be found by searching award number FA9550261B042 on SAM.gov (https://sam.gov) or through the AFOSR website at https://www.afrl.af.mil/AFOSR/.

This work was funded by the Department of the Air Force, Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) under award number FA9550261B042, as part of a financial assistance award totaling $250,000.

The opinions, findings, views, conclusions or recommendations contained herein are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as necessarily representing the official policies or endorsements, either expressed or implied, of the DAF, AFRL or the U.S. Government.