A steady flow of federal funding is crucial for advancing research into Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, UC Irvine research leaders told U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla during a roundtable discussion on campus Tuesday afternoon.
Padilla convened the roundtable with researchers from UCI’s Institute for Memory Impairments and Neurological Disorders, Orange County’s only state- and federally-funded Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.
“A cut isn’t just dollars and cents. There’s a real-world impact on people’s lives, health and quality of life,” Padilla said. “Those types of breakthroughs are going to be delayed based on what happens.”
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Sen. Alex Padilla takes a last look at the brain display after finishing his tour of UCI MIND and handling the brain with, at left, Megan Witbracht’s, Ph.D, associate director of education at UCI MIND, direction as Hal Stern and Joshua D. Grill speak in the MIND lab at the University of California, Irvine, in Irvine, California on Sept. 8, 2026. (Photo by Erin Burk, Contributing Photographer)
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Sen. Alex Padilla takes a last look at the brain display after finishing his tour of UCI MIND and handling the brain with, at left, Megan Witbracht’s, Ph.D, associate director of education at UCI MIND, direction as Hal Stern and Joshua D. Grill speak in the MIND lab at the University of California, Irvine, in Irvine, California on Sept. 8, 2026. (Photo by Erin Burk, Contributing Photographer)
Since UCI MIND is funded through the National Institute on Aging, its research into brain aging and cognitive disorders largely depends on federal dollars granted through the National Institutes of Health. So when the federal government cut or froze more than $3 billion in previously approved research grants from NIH and the National Science Foundation throughout last year — and announced it would cap funding for overhead costs for research at 15% — UC schools warned that valuable research programs were at risk of having their work hindered.
Despite some funding restored earlier this year, Padilla said researchers like those at UCI MIND said the priority isn’t just the availability of funds. What’s just as important is the consistent flow of funding to keep research continuing without breaks or delays, he said.
After the roundtable, which was closed to the press, Padilla toured UCI MIND’s research center, widely regarded as one of the nation’s most important hubs for research into Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.
The roundtable discussion featured presentations on UCI’s general research portfolio and how the university’s Beall Applied Innovation Center brings together work from university researchers to create new products and services for everyday people from their discoveries, said Tom Vasich, a spokesperson for the university.
“(Beall) works with our faculty to patent promising discoveries and then finds ways to bring them to the marketplace,” Vasich said. “We really want to make sure that our discoveries do benefit the community … federal funding to help drive these research innovations at UCI MIND (is crucial).”
“Work underway at UCI MIND is a powerful example, advancing the search for new therapies and ultimately cures for Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, while also improving early identification and intervention so that people can live healthier, fuller lives for as long as possible,” he said.
Padilla got to hold and learn about UCI MIND’s research material, including a brain donated to the institute by a 74-year-old woman who was a participant in the ARDC’s longitudinal cohort, said Janet Ko, chief information officer for UCI MIND.
The Democratic senator said several research centers like UCI MIND have appealed the freezing of funds or sued for what they were originally budgeted for through grants. And while the flow of that funding returning may seem like good news, “that delay alone has its impacts,” he said, not only on the research itself, but on the people doing the work.
“One of the important dots they were able to connect was (how funding freezes impact) not just the professor, the faculty, the researcher, even the Master’s or Doctoral students, but the undergraduate experience,” he said. “Being able to participate in a research project that UCI is known for doesn’t just mean a better education — it means better preparation for entering the workforce.”
NIH, in February 2025, said it was implementing the cap because indirect costs — which are negotiated between it and research institutions to cover essential research expenses including lab equipment, administrative support and utilities — “averaged between 27% and 28% over time,” but many institutions charge more than 50%, with some exceeding 60%.
The order by NIH also said private foundations that fund research “provide substantially lower indirect costs than the federal government,” and the 15% cap was in line with many of the nation’s largest funders of research, like the Gates Foundation.
Looking ahead, Padilla said, the good news is that Congress has taken steps to avoid a government shutdown through early December. But once budget talks resume, a priority will be to continue current funding levels “without skipping a beat,” he said.
“When projects are delayed, those opportunities and experiences are delayed, and maybe students are now graduating without having had that research experience that makes them more valuable.”