NU invests $577,000 to support research in NSRI’s mission

The University of Nebraska System continues to invest in innovative research solutions for national security challenges, recently awarding nearly $577,000 to projects in support of the National Strategic Research Institute’s mission.

The funding comes through the NU Collaboration Initiative, which NSRI leverages annually to catalyze efforts relevant to the U.S. Department of Defense. As the Department of Defense-designated University Affiliated Research Center for NU and the U.S. Strategic Command, NSRI aims to harness the intellectual capacity and leading capabilities of NU’s four campuses to deliver research solutions for strategic deterrence and countering weapons of mass destruction.

“This seed funding enables our researchers to pursue novel ideas that may provide new data, technologies and strategies to operators and defense decision makers,” said Joshua Santarpia, PhD, NSRI science and technology advisor and a professor of pathology, microbiology and immunology at UNMC. “Continuing to foster an environment a collaborative and innovative environment is crucial for staying ahead in an ever-evolving global threat landscape.”

Funded projects include:

• Deciphering the contribution of environmental bacterium to agriculture and medicine. Led by Martin Conda-Sheridan, PhD, associate professor of pharmaceutical sciences at UNMC. Dr. Conda-Sheridan said: “Through our investigation, we are aiming to find new antibiotics by characterizing the antimicrobial molecules of environmental bacteria with demonstrated antimicrobial activity against plant pathogenic bacteria. The goal is to develop novel antimicrobials to combat infectious diseases affecting humans, animals or plants. Thus, this project could translate agricultural research on plant pathology to address antimicrobial resistance in pathogens.”
• Advanced Analytics Laboratory at the University of Nebraska at Omaha College of Business Administration. Led by NSRI Fellow Dustin White, PhD, associate professor of economics at UNO.
• Examining the autoimmune potential of HISP, a broad-spectrum anti-infective immunostimulating peptide. Led by NSRI Fellow Paul Davis, PhD, professor of biology at UNO.
• Remote nanoparticle heating for enhanced continuous monitoring of aptamer-based protein detection. Led by NSRI Fellow Ryan Riskowski, PhD, UNO assistant professor of physics.
• Antibacterial elastic materials for infection-resistant prosthetics. Led by NSRI Fellow Denis Svechkarev, PhD, assistant professor of chemistry at UNO.
• High-flux micro-pleated filter for waterborne pathogen removal. Led by Yury Salkovskiy, PhD, assistant professor of biomechanics at UNO.

The NU Collaboration Initiative has invested more than $1.2 million of seed funding into 21 projects relevant to NSRI’s mission. The RFA for fiscal year 2026 projects is published for University of Nebraska researchers to apply.