Back
Science

Penn State Researcher Melanie McReynolds Awarded Hypothesis Fund Seed Grant for Aging Study

Generated on: Last updated: 1 sources
View source

Researcher Investigates Metabolic Roots of Aging with Hypothesis Fund Grant

Melanie McReynolds, an assistant professor at Pennsylvania State University, has received a seed grant from the Hypothesis Fund to support her early-stage research into the metabolic foundations of aging. The grant will fund her project, titled "Is Aging a Failure of Metabolic Communication?" which investigates the role of the essential molecule NAD+ in age-related diseases.

Grant Details and Selection

The Hypothesis Fund provides seed grants designed to support new ideas in basic research at their earliest stages, typically before preliminary data is available.

According to the fund, its aim is to advance scientific knowledge by supporting research that increases adaptability against systemic risks to human and planetary health.

McReynolds' project was selected based on what the fund described as the boldness of the science, the researcher's willingness to pursue a high-risk idea, and the potential long-term impact of the work.

Research Focus: NAD+ and Aging

McReynolds' research program focuses on metabolic vulnerabilities associated with aging, with a specific interest in the molecule nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+). NAD+ is a coenzyme required by all living cells for fundamental metabolic processes.

Scientific observations have linked low levels of NAD+ to aging and to several age-related diseases, including type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, and cancer. McReynolds' work aims to understand how NAD+ is produced and consumed in the body, with the goal of clarifying the metabolic causes of diseases and the aging process.

Researcher Background and Recognition

Melanie McReynolds holds the Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Early Career Chair in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Penn State. Her previous recognitions include:

  • A Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award from the U.S. National Science Foundation in 2025.
  • Selection as an inaugural fellow of the multi-institution Intersections Science Fellows Symposium (2021).
  • Recognition as a Rising Star in Health Sciences Research in metabolism by the University of Utah (2021).
  • A Hanna H. Gray Fellowship from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (2018).
  • Membership in the Burroughs Wellcome Fund Postdoctoral Research Enrichment Program (2018).
  • Inclusion as a Rising Star on the Cell Press list of Top 100 Inspiring Black Scientists in America during her postdoctoral work.

Education and Career History

Prior to her faculty appointment at Penn State, McReynolds was a postdoctoral researcher at Princeton University from 2017 to 2021.

She earned her doctoral degree in biochemistry and molecular biology from Penn State in 2017. She received a master's degree in biological sciences from Alcorn State University in 2011, which she completed through the Alcorn State to Penn State Bridges to the Doctorate Program.