BRITE Pivot: Transforming Mechanobiology - Integrating Spatial Transcriptomics, Collagen Architecture, and Tissue Mechanics

NSF Award Search · 01002526DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT · $600,000 · view on nsf.gov ↗

Abstract

This BRITE Pivot research project aims to develop new engineering tools to better understand how biological signals (like gene and protein expression) interact with mechanical signals (like tissue structure and stiffness) in the body. These tools will allow scientists to combine and visualize biological and mechanical data at the cellular and subcellular levels, offering new mechanobiology insights into how these signals work together. The research focuses on the uterus, specifically investigating how exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), such as propylparaben (PP)—a common preservative found in everyday products like lotions and cosmetics—may affect fertility and pregnancy. Growing evidence suggests that long-term exposure to EDCs may trigger inflammation and fibrosis (the buildup of collagen), which can interfere with embryo implantation, a crucial step in pregnancy. Tools that look to be developed could also be used to study inflammation and fibrosis in other organs, including the lung, kidney, and liver. By advancing engineering tools and applying them to urgent public health challenges, this research seeks to advance the fields of mechanobiology and mechanics and contributes more broadly to understanding tissue dysfunction across multiple organ systems. This research aims to bring powerful and emerging tools in molecular and cellular biology—spatial omics and multiplexed protein profiling—into the field of mechanobiology. The goal is to integrate and co-

Key facts

NSF award ID
2527188
Awardee
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (IL)
SAM.gov UEI
Y8CWNJRCNN91
PI
Amy Wagoner Johnson
Primary program
01002526DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
All programs
MB-Mechanobiology, GRADUATE INVOLVEMENT, BIOMECHANICS, WOMEN, MINORITY, DISABLED, NEC
Estimated total
$600,000
Funds obligated
$600,000
Transaction type
Standard Grant
Period
10/01/2025 → 09/30/2028