For our May Member Spotlight, we’re featuring Streck’s 2026 Award Lecture Recipient
Streck Award Lecture: 2026 Winner Matthew D. Disney, Ph.D.
For 10 years, Streck has partnered with the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s Department of Chemistry to recognize leading scientists whose work in chemical biology is advancing medicine and improving human health. The Streck Award Lecture honors researchers who push boundaries, ask bold questions and develop technologies with real impact on healthcare.
This year’s winner is Matthew D. Disney, Ph.D., Institute Professor and Chair of the Department of Chemistry at the Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation and Technology. Dr. Disney is recognized internationally for his work in RNA-targeted therapeutics — designing small molecules that bind to and disable disease-causing RNAs. His research has opened new treatment pathways for conditions including Huntington’s disease, muscular dystrophy, ALS, and certain cancers.
During a recent conversation, Dr. Disney put the scope of RNA’s role in disease simply: “I think every disease is caused by an RNA.” He also drew a striking parallel from the COVID-19 era: “In some sense, we’re coming off an era where RNA is the disease and the cure.”
During his visit to Streck, Dr. Disney reflected on the company’s role in diagnostics: “The positive impact that you guys have on people to be able to identify what disease they have, that can make a treatment. This is really where a lot of effort and development needs to be made.”
On being recognized alongside past honorees like Carolyn Bertozzi, Kevan Shokat, Tom Muir, and Benjamin Cravatt, Dr. Disney said: “I’m reminded by the people in the award and also you guys here that I have to work harder and do better to get my stuff to patients, to help humanity, which is, I think, what we all want to do.”
That work — connecting breakthrough science to real patient impact — is exactly what the Streck Award Lecture was built to champion and why bringing researchers like Dr. Disney to Nebraska matters. As Dr. David Berkowitz, co-founder of the award, put it: “Bringing world leaders here to Lincoln and Omaha who are shaping the future of science is what makes it so special.” For a decade, the lecture has served as a bridge between Nebraska’s scientific community and the researchers defining the cutting edge of their fields, and this year’s milestone is a testament to what that partnership continues to make possible.