The Vanderbilt Kennedy Center has announced the recipients of the 2025–26 Nicholas Hobbs Discovery Awards, a program that supports innovative pilot research aimed at improving the lives of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their families.
Named in honor of Dr. Nicholas Hobbs, a pioneering psychologist and founding director of the VKC, the Awards are given annually to fund early-stage, high-impact research projects. These pilot studies are designed to generate preliminary data that will strengthen future applications for larger grants from federal agencies or private foundations.
The awards are made possible through the generous support of donors.
This year’s competition prioritized proposals developing innovative measurements and methodologies relevant to IDD. Three outstanding projects have been selected for funding in 2025–26.
Colleen Niswender, Ph.D.
Regulation of Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor 7 Expression by MicroRNA Site-Blocking Antisense Oligonucleotides: A Novel Treatment for Rett Syndrome
Principal Investigator: Colleen Niswender, Ph.D.
Rett syndrome is a rare neurological disorder that causes children to lose motor, social, and cognitive abilities after a period of seemingly typical development. Most cases result from mutations in the MECP2 gene, leading to widespread disruptions in brain function.
Niswender’s project seeks to understand why levels of the receptor metabotropic glutamate receptor 7 (mGlu7) are reduced in Rett syndrome and to test a new therapeutic approach using DNA molecules to restore those levels. The study will use both animal neurons and stem cells from Rett patients to evaluate whether increasing mGlu7 expression can improve neuronal function.
This work could pave the way for new drug therapies to address symptoms of Rett syndrome and related disorders, while also advancing advocacy and visibility for these conditions in the scientific community.
Bill Nobis, M.D., Ph.D.
Evaluation of the Effect of Early Life Stress on Behavior, Seizures, and BNST Synaptic Physiology in the Mouse Model of Dravet Syndrome
Principal Investigator: Bill Nobis, M.D., Ph.D.
Dravet syndrome is a severe childhood epilepsy that causes frequent seizures, developmental delays, and increased risk of sudden death in epilepsy (SUDEP). Stress is a known trigger for seizures, yet the relationship between early life stress and disease progression in Dravet syndrome remains poorly understood.
Nobis’s team will examine how early environmental stress, modeled by brief maternal separations during infancy, affects brain development and seizure susceptibility in mice carrying the Scn1a mutation common to individuals with Dravet syndrome. The study will focus on the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST), a brain region that regulates stress responses.
Findings could identify new therapeutic targets to reduce seizures and SUDEP risk while improving emotional well-being, offering hope for better quality of life for individuals with Dravet syndrome and other developmental epilepsies.
Laurie Cutting, Ph.D.
Audrey Bowden, Ph.D.
Feasibility of Real-Time Reading Intervention Enabled by fNIRS Neurofeedback
Co-Principal Investigators: Audrey Bowden, Ph.D., and Laurie Cutting, Ph.D.
Reading difficulties such as dyslexia affect millions of children and adults worldwide. This interdisciplinary study by Bowden and Cutting explores whether functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), which is a portable brain-imaging technology, can be used to guide real-time, adaptive reading instruction.
By measuring brain activity as adults perform reading and word-recognition tasks, the research team aims to determine if brain-based feedback can tailor instruction dynamically to each learner’s needs. If successful, this “smart” tutoring system could revolutionize reading interventions, making them more responsive, efficient, and accessible in classrooms and clinics alike.
Top photo by Getty Images/iStockphoto
