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2024 Lemann Brazil Research Fund awardees announced 

Mass Hall at Harvard University.
3 min read

The Office of the Vice Provost for Research and the Office of the Vice Provost for International Affairs are pleased to announce the results of the 2024 competition for awards from the Lemann Brazil Research Fund. 

“We are grateful to all our applicants, who demonstrated both the breadth of Harvard’s research interests in Brazil and the significance of our ongoing collaboration with Brazilian scholars,” said John Shaw, vice provost for research, Harry C. Dudley Professor of Structural and Economic Geology, and professor of environmental science and engineering. Mark Elliott, vice provost for international affairs and Mark Schwartz Professor of Chinese and Inner Asian History, emphasized the impact of the Lemann Brazil Research Fund, noting that “through the longstanding support of the Lemann Foundation, the Lemann Fund has been a convening force for a faculty community dedicated to groundbreaking international research.” 

Established in 2016 by a generous gift from the Lemann Foundation, the Lemann Brazil Research Fund supports Brazil-related research in all areas related to education, as well as research in any other disciplinary area undertaken with a Brazilian colleague. 

This year’s awarded projects are: 

“Phylogenetics and Genomics of Wyeomyia Mosquito Adaptations to Different Breeding Sites in Brazil and Elsewhere” by Brian Farrell, Monique and Philip Lehner Professor for the Study of Latin America, professor of organismic and evolutionary biology, and curator of Entomology in the Harvard Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences; with collaborators Paulino Ribeiro (Museum of Comparative Zoology) and Sangil Kim (Seoul National University) 

“Exploring the Effects of CaneStat, a Novel Hybrid Protein, on Oral Proteome Dynamics and Microbiome Composition” by Magda Feres, chair of Oral Medicine, Infection, and Immunity, Harvard School of Dental Medicine, and Marília Afonso Rabelo Buzalaf, professor of biochemistry and cariology, University of São Paulo Bauro School of Dentistry; with co-investigators Eduardo H. de Souza Oliveira (Harvard School of Dental Medicine) and Carolina Ruis Ferrari (University of São Paulo, Bauru School of Dentistry) and collaborators Adriana Campos Passanezi Sant’Ana (University of São Paulo, Bauru) and Flávio Henrique da Silva (Federal University of São Carlos) 

“The Contracting State:  How Private Contractors Affect Public Policy and Political Parties in Brazil” by Alisha Holland, professor of government, Faculty of Arts and Sciences; with co-investigator Fernando Limongi de Magalhaes (Escola de Economia de São Paulo, Fundação Getúlio Vargas) and collaborator Jean Vilbert (Faculty of Arts and Sciences) 

“Dissecting Mechanisms of Cancer Caused by a DNA Mutation Prevalent in Brazilian Children” by Adrian Salic, professor of cell biology, Harvard Medical School; with collaborators Elvis Terci Valera (University of São Paulo) and Carlos Alberto Scrideli (University of São Paulo) 

“Characterizing the Bioavailability and Food Web Uptake of Mercury from Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) in the Brazilian Amazon” by Elsie Sunderland, Fred Kavli Professor of Environmental Chemistry and professor of Earth and planetary sciences, Faculty of Arts and Sciences; with co-investigator Scot Martin (Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences) and collaborator Sergio Duvoision Júnior (Universidade do Estado do Amazonas)