UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The One Health Microbiome Center (OHMC) of the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences at Penn State has selected three recipients for the 2026 Interdisciplinary Innovation Fellowship (IIF), a competitive funding opportunity that supports trainee-led projects bringing together diverse disciplines in innovative and impactful ways. This year, three recipients were each awarded funds to advance collaborative research through the development of new skills, tools and approaches that transcend traditional academic boundaries.
Established in 2022, the IIF aims to expand trainees' expertise beyond their primary research focus through short-term training experiences in a lab at Penn State or with collaborators at other institutions. After completing the fellowship, recipients return to their home labs at Penn State to apply and share their newly acquired knowledge with the center community. Fellows also present a public seminar, giving a broader audience an opportunity to learn from their experiences and discoveries.
“The IIF program is grounded in our shared values and common mission to enable center members to expand their expertise and training with vital experiences in the laboratory of another center faculty member or external colleague to the campus” said Seth Bordenstein, director of the One Health Microbiome Center, Huck Professor in Microbiome Sciences, and professor of biology and of entomology. “Each awardee is ambitious in their vision, dedication and steadfastness to boost the creative capabilities of the community and facilitate collaboration among center members, with an emphasis on connecting traditionally siloed units.”
The three 2026-27 awardees and their winning proposals are:
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“Microbial Lysate Cocktails for Cancer Immunotherapy” — Sijia Yang, doctoral student in biomedical engineering and advised by Pak Kin Wong, professor of biomedical engineering. Yang will train with collaborators at Stanford University.
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“Harnessing dietary fiber to reshape the gut microbiome and promote mucosal repair in inflammatory bowel disease” — Gopi Yalavarthi, doctoral candidate in nutritional sciences and advised by Vishal Singh, associate professor of nutritional sciences. Yalavarthi will train with Darrell Cockburn, associate professor of food science.
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“Functional Characterization of Gut Microbiome-Derived Lasso Peptides” — Zachary Budimir, postdoctoral researcher in chemistry and advised by Carly Schissel, assistant professor of chemistry. Budimir will collaborate with Jordan Bisanz, assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology.
One of this year’s recipients, Gopi Yalavarthi, highlighted that this program will provide an opportunity to expand research collaborations and develop new approaches to addressing complex health challenges.
“I am honored to receive the IIF and excited to advance our research on how dietary fibers can reshape the gut microbiome and promote intestinal healing in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD),” Yalavarthi said. “I look forward to developing findings that may support safe, diet-based strategies to complement existing treatments for individuals living with IBD.”
Last year’s awardee Daniela Betancurt-Anzola, a doctoral candidate in biochemistry, microbiology and molecular biology and advised by Estelle Couradeau, assistant professor of soils and environmental microbiology, pointed to the fellowship as a key factor in advancing her research.
“Receiving the Interdisciplinary Innovations Fellowship has been transformative for both my research and my Ph.D. journey,” Betancurt-Anzola said. “The fellowship enabled me to expand my project from metagenomics to a multi-omics approach by incorporating metabolomics. It also provided training with collaborators at the University of Arizona in multiomics data integration. This support has strengthened my dissertation and highlighted the value of interdisciplinary collaboration in advancing scientific research.”
The Interdisciplinary Innovation Fellowships are awarded annually each summer and are open to active members of the Penn State One Health Microbiome Center. Trainees, faculty and staff are encouraged to apply, and partnerships to further support these transformative research endeavors are welcome. For more information, please contact Mallorie Smith at mqs5394@psu.edu.
About the OHMC
As one of the largest and most active units in the field, the OHMC is on a global mission to define the great microbiome center of the 21st century and build a legacy of contributions that promote the general welfare of humans, agriculture and the environment. Learn more on the OHMC website.