Princeton professors Michelle Chan, Celeste Nelson and A.J. te Velthuis are among 103 researchers nationwide to receive 2022 High-Risk, High-Reward research awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), created to support unconventional approaches to major challenges in biomedical and behavioral research.

“The science advanced by these researchers is poised to blaze new paths of discovery in human health,” said Lawrence A. Tabak, the acting director of the NIH. “This unique cohort of scientists will transform what is known in the biological and behavioral world.”

The 103 awards, including eight Pioneer Awards, 72 New Innovator Awards, nine Transformative Research Awards and 14 Early Independence Awards, account for more than $200 million in research spending over five years.

Celeste Nelson, Princeton’s Wilke Family Professor in Bioengineering and a professor of chemical and biological engineering, is one of the eight recipients of the NIH Director’s Pioneer Award. Established in 2004, the Pioneer Award challenges investigators to pursue new research directions and develop groundbreaking, high-impact approaches to a broad area of biomedical, behavioral or social science.

Michelle Chan and A.J. te Velthuis are two of the 72 nationwide winners of the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award, established in 2007. New Innovator Awards support unusually innovative research from early career investigators.

While the individual award amounts vary widely, the 103 NIH Director’s Awards, including eight Pioneer Awards, 72 New Innovator Awards, nine Transformative Research Awards and 14 Early Independence Awards, account for more than $200 million in research spending over five years.