In the wake of nationwide federal research grant cuts, the scientific work of University of Iowa staff members Clark Stanford, Joshua Weiner, Tina Tootle, and Robert Piper has led to their recognition by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, or AAAS.

These fellowships are awarded at a time of turmoil for scientific research, as President Donald Trump’s administration has been cutting research funding at universities and institutions nationwide since his inauguration in January.

AAAS is the publisher of the journal Science and is recognized as the world’s largest general scientific study. Each year, they name around 500 individuals for their pattern of scientific impact and distinguished achievements in their respective fields. Last year’s class had 502 members, and this year’s class has 471 members.

The UI represented innovation in multiple fields. Stanford’s achievements are in the field of oral health and dentistry, Weiner’s are in neuroscience, and both Tootle’s and Piper’s are in biology.

Piper acknowledged the UI’s role in providing the necessary environment that allowed all four fellows to reach innovative successes, as they “grew up academically” at the university, spending much of their young careers there.

“I think you’ll find a common theme where our success, whatever there is of it, is really attributable to the environment here at Iowa. And you know, we’re happy,” Piper said. “I think we all came from different places, different states, and stuff like that. Now we’re Iowans, and we’re pretty proud of that.”

He explained why his research, focused on how cells get rid of proteins they no longer need, is so rewarding.

“There’s a lot of just fundamental aspects of how cells work and how biology works that we don’t understand at all,” Piper said. “I think what we do makes a dent in that.”

Stanford, who worked as a faculty member for 22 years before leaving, came back to the university in 2022. He said UI faculty members are highly collaborative and welcoming toward each other, which makes it easier to treat patients with complex cases.

His research focuses on ectodermal dysplasias, a genetic anomaly that affects the growth of various parts of the body, such as teeth, nails, skin, and hair. He is currently working on a drug therapy project with the goal of correcting the genetic mutation that leads to ectodermal dysplasias before birth.

Stanford was one of only three dentists recognized in this year’s class.

“[I am] humbled, definitely. It’s always been a team effort,” Stanford said. “There’s a lot of people that have helped me along the way, and a lot of the patients that I’ve seen over the years, each of them have a unique journey, and I’ve been humbled that they have allowed me to be a part, a small part, of that journey they’ve each traveled.”

Tootle’s research focuses on studying prostaglandins — a group of lipids crucial in regulating physiological processes and controlling pain — and how their operation in flies mirrors cancer metastasis in the human body.

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She described how she fell in love with science during a high school summer internship.

“I looked in the dish, and [the scientist] was growing neurons from human nasal passages in the dish,” she said. “They looked exactly like they did in a textbook, and I was hooked. I wanted to look through microscopes the rest of my life.”

She said her nomination as a 2024 AAAS fellow made her think back to that time in her life.

“It made me reflect, ‘What would my high school self think?’ at this moment, and be very happy and very proud that I got here, but also grateful to all the people that have come through my lab,” Tootle said. “This wouldn’t have happened without every single trainee that I’ve mentored contributing to these studies.”

Joshua Weiner, a developmental neurobiologist, associate dean of research and infrastructure, and professor of biology at the university, researches brain development. He said the most rewarding and satisfying part of his career was a series of papers from his work creating transgenic mice.

He worked on manipulating the genes of the mice that encode for proteins and using what happens in the brains of the mice to infer how the proteins react.

He said the fellowship nomination has not only been exciting and gratifying, but it also speaks to the work of all his students and the collaborative effort rather than just being his own accomplishment.

“It’s an indication that the work we all did had an impact on the field. And I think that’s really all you can hope for as a scientist, is that people find the work that you did worthwhile,” he said.