MONROE, La. – Dr. Huy M. Dao, Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Louisiana Monroe, has received a $380,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to improve how protein-based medicines — such as vaccines and biologics — survive freezing and thawing.
This award is particularly notable as NSF funds only the most rigorous fundamental research, and grants of this kind are rarely awarded to faculty in pharmacy or health sciences, making it a meaningful recognition of the scientific novelty of Dr. Dao's work at the intersection of engineering and medicine.
"Every day I walk past a quote on the staircase at the College of Pharmacy that says, 'If at first you don't succeed, you're normal.' I carried that mindset going in — I didn't expect to win on the first try. So, this is a genuinely pleasant surprise, and I'm incredibly thankful to ULM and our College for creating the conditions where this research could thrive,” said Dr. Dao.
Dr. Dao’s project, “Freeze Induced Protein Instability Driven by Air Water Interfacial Stress,” will investigate the fundamental mechanisms of cryopreservation-induced damage in biologics.
Many of these medicines are damaged when they are accidentally thawed during shipping and then re-frozen, making them unsafe to use and leading to costly waste. Dr. Dao's research aims to understand why this damage happens and develop a simple pre-treatment that allows these medicines to withstand multiple freeze-thaw cycles without losing their effectiveness.
The findings could make the medical supply chain more resilient, reduce medicine waste, and ultimately improve patient access to critical treatments. Looking further ahead, this work has the potential to expand into the preservation of living cells and tissues, opening doors to advances in regenerative medicine and cell-based therapies.
The three-year project will also provide hands-on research training for ULM students and include science outreach to local high school students in the Monroe community.
“Dr. Dao’s award is a significant accomplishment that reflects the quality of research taking place in the ULM College of Pharmacy. His work addresses a practical and important challenge in protecting critical medicines, while also creating opportunities for our students to engage in meaningful scientific research,” said Dr. Gina Craft, Dean of the ULM College of Pharmacy.