Kelsey Swingle, assistant professor of bioengineering at Rice University, has received the PhD Thesis Award from the Controlled Release Society (CRS) for her doctoral research in one of the most significant health challenges facing new mothers and their babies: pre-eclampsia.
Pre-eclampsia, a hypertensive disorder that occurs during pregnancies and the postpartum period, is a leading cause of maternal and fetal mortality worldwide. Affecting 5-8% of all pregnancies, the condition is characterized by high blood pressure, restricted blood flow to the placenta, and severe organ damage if left untreated.
Swingle’s doctoral research focuses on engineering lipid nanoparticles that selectively target the placenta and reverse key features of preeclampsia, creating new avenues for precision therapeutics for pregnancy complications.
“Kelsey's work addresses one of the most challenging problems in maternal-fetal medicine: how to safely deliver therapies to the placenta without exposing the developing fetus,” said Cynthia Reinhart-King, chair of the Department of Bioengineering and the John W. Cox Chair of Bioengineering. “It's an outstanding example of how bioengineering can transform fundamental advances in drug delivery into technologies with the potential to improve the lives of mothers and babies worldwide.”
Her doctoral thesis, titled “Engineering placenta-tropic VEGF mRNA lipid nanoparticles for the treatment of pre-eclampsia,” is based on research she conducted at the University of Pennsylvania in the lab of Michael Mitchell prior to joining Rice University faculty in 2025.
“Receiving the PhD Thesis Award from the Controlled Release Society is an honor and an exciting milestone in my academic journey,” said Swingle. “I’m grateful to the teams, mentors and colleagues that have shaped my research career.”
The CRS is a scientific community that advances research, technology, education, and networking in the field of delivery science worldwide. Swingle was formally presented with this award at the society’s 2026 Annual Meeting in Lisbon, Portugal, July 6–9.