UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Denise Okafor, assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology and of chemistry and Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Early Career Chair in Biophysics at Penn State, has been honored with the 2026 Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship. Awarded annually since 1955, the fellowship honors extraordinary researchers whose creativity, innovation and research accomplishments make them stand out as the next generation of scientific leaders.
“The Sloan Research Fellows are among the most promising early-career researchers in the U.S. and Canada, already driving meaningful progress in their respective disciplines,” said Stacie Bloom, president and chief executive officer of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. “We look forward to seeing how these exceptional scholars continue to unlock new scientific advancements, redefine their fields, and foster the wellbeing and knowledge of all.”
Okafor will receive $75,000 over two years to advance her research. She is one of 126 researchers from 44 institutions across the U.S. and Canada to make up this year’s cohort. Fellowship candidates are nominated by fellow scientists and winners are selected by independent panels of senior scholars on the basis of a candidate’s research accomplishments, creativity and potential.
In her research, Okafor combines experimental methods with simulation of protein dynamics to understand how protein structure and dynamics impact protein signaling and regulation. Her lab specializes in proteins called nuclear receptors that bind to DNA and impact gene expression and explores how these nuclear receptors are modulated by molecules called ligands. Because nuclear receptors impact a range of critical cellular processes, including development, reproduction and metabolism, they are often therapeutic targets for drug development.
In 2025, Okafor was selected as one of the 2025 Chemical & Engineering News Talented 12. Her other awards and honors include the Cottrell Scholar Award in 2024, the Marion Milligan Mason Award in 2023, the National Institutes of Health Director’s New Innovator Award in 2022, and a Faculty Early Career Development award from the U.S. National Science Foundation in 2021.
Okafor received a bachelor’s degree in biomedical chemistry from Oral Roberts University, master’s degree in chemistry and doctoral degree in biochemistry at the Georgia Institute of Technology. She was a National Institute of Health-Institutional Research and Academic Career Development Award postdoctoral fellow at Emory University.