Congratulations to Olachi Mezu-Ndubuisi, MD, OD, who was recently awarded $50,000 from the UnityPoint Health-Meriter Foundation for a one-year study entitled, “Inflammatory Biomarkers as Predictors of Neonatal Disease (IPN) Project”. With data from previous studies, this work will identify inflammatory biomarkers to predict which neonates with very low birth weight (VLBW) in the Meriter Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), are likely to develop neonatal diseases such as chronic lung disease, necrotizing enterocolitis, retinopathy of prematurity, intraventricular hemorrhage, and patent ductus arteriosus. The goal of the project is to create strategies that can be implemented to identify newborns at risk of developing these diseases in hopes of improving their neurodevelopmental outcomes through early interventions, care, and monitoring.