Research
Research Awards
Recognizes faculty at the professor level for their distinguished contributions to research. Awardee is provided with a plaque and recognized at the department’s annual Academic Forum.
2024 Awardee
Richard L. Kravitz, M.D., M.S.P.H., Professor, General Medicine and Bioethics
To support investigators secure career development (K) and research (R) awards and transition into independent researchers. Applicants must have prior approval from their division chief. Preference will be given to candidates with a track record of actively applying for research grant opportunities. The department funds one award amount of $100,000 per year, up to 2 years. Up to $20,000 per year may be used to fund materials and supplies. Funds may only be used for the PI salary. Salary support for other personnel not allowed.
2023-2025 Awardees
Jacqueline Stocking, M.D.
Assistant Adjunct Professor, Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine
“Development of a predictive model and electronic health record-based probability scoring system and dashboard for postoperative respiratory failure”
Padmini Sirish, Ph.D.
Assistant Researcher, Cardiovascular Medicine
“Cardiac Regenerative Therapy Using Gene-Edited Stem Cells”
Recognizes faculty at the assistant and associate level for their distinguished contributions to research. Awardee is provided with a plaque and recognized at the department’s annual Academic Forum.
2024 Awardee
Theresa H. Keegan, Ph.D., M.S., Professor, Hematology and Oncology
Dr. John (Jack) Rutledge, M.D. was an outstanding cardiologist and physician scientist who dedicated 45 years of his life to a distinguished career in academic medicine contributing greatly to elevating the standing of the University. He held many leadership roles and served as The Department of Internal Medicine's Vice Chair for Research. He was admired by his colleagues for his many qualities including his intellect, creativity, and selflessness in advancing the careers of others having mentored over 70 health science trainees during his long and distinguished career including graduate students, residents, and fellows. The Trainee Research Award is named in his honor to acknowledge his remarkable legacy of dedication to mentoring and developing science trainees and early career faculty. Awards are given for outstanding papers or manuscripts published, submitted, or in preparation during current academic year.
Each awardee is presented with a $1,500 research award and plaque. Each mentor is presented with a $500 research award. Awards are distributed at the department’s annual Academic Forum. The award is intended to:
- Recognize and reward trainees (residents, clinical fellows, graduate students, and postdoctoral scholars) for excellence in research
- Encourage scientific academic careers
- Attract research-oriented medical students to our residency program
- Encourage trainees’ scholarship by pairing them with highly successful mentors
- Increase departmental cohesion around trainee scholarship
- Encourage philanthropic support from the community for our department’s academic mission because of our commitment to developing medical scientists
2024 Resident Awardees
Morgan Casper, M.D.
Mentor: Uma Srivatsa M.B.B.S., M.A.S., F.H.R.S.
"Mapping Ventricular Arrhythmogenic Substrates: Insights from Electroanatomic and Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in Ischemic and Non-Ischemic Cardiomyopathies"
Tahir Mahmood, M.D.
Mentor: Michael D. Shapiro, DO
"Effect of PCSK9 inhibition on plasma levels of small dense low density lipoprotein-cholesterol and 7-ketocholesterol"
Ayman Teeham Ullah, M.D.
Mentor: Jonathan Riess, M.D., M.S.
"Genomic Associations of Chemoimmunotherapy Outcomes in a Real-World Cohort of Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC) Patients"
2024 Clinical Fellow Awardees
Madhab Ray, M.D., M.S., M.B.A.
Mentor: Baback Roshanravan, M.D., M.S.P.H., M.S.
"Development and validation of a predictive model for the diagnosis of rheumatic heart disease in low-income countries based on two cross-sectional studies"
Aaron Tsumura, M.D.
Mentor: Joseph Tuscano, M.D.
"Checkpoint inhibition in hematologic malignancies"
Alex Zhornitskiy, M.D.
Mentor: Eric J. Mao, M.D.
"Epidemiology and Clinical Outcomes of Hospitalized Hispanic Patients with IBD: Results of a Large National Cohort Study"
2024 Postdoc and Graduate Student Awardees
Armin, Ahmadi
Mentor: Baback Roshanravan, M.D., M.S.P.H., M.S.
"Impaired incretin homeostasis in non-diabetic moderate-severe chronic kidney disease"
Nicholaus L. DeCuzzi
Mentor: Amir Zeki, M.D. and John Albeck, Ph.D.
"Spatiotemporal Clusters of ERK Activity Coordinate Cytokine-induced Inflammatory Responses in Human Airway Epithelial Cells"
Yang Zheng, Ph.D.
Mentor: Nipavan Chiamvimonvat, M.D.
"Acute PKA Modulation of the Cardiac Sodium Current is Mediated by 14-3-3"
Awards are given for outstanding papers or manuscripts published, submitted, or in preparation during current academic year. Awardees are presented with a $250 monetary award and plaque at the department’s annual Academic Forum. The award is intended to:
- Reward trainees (residents, clinical fellows, graduate students, and postdoctoral scholars) for excellence in diabetes research
- Encourage trainee scholarship
2024 Awardees
Grace LeBleu, MSc, RDN
Mentor: Fawaz G. Haj, Ph.D.
"Phospho-Proteomic Analysis of Insulin Signaling in Cultured Podocytes Reveals Novel Signaling Networks Between PTP1B, TCPTP, and Shp2"
Saivageethi Nuthikattu, Ph.D.
Mentor: Amparo Villablanca, M.D.
"Single nuclei transcriptomics in diabetic mice reveals altered brain hippocampal endothelial cell function, permeability, and behavior."
Madhab Ray, M.D., M.S., M.B.A.
Mentor: Baback Roshanravan, M.D., M.S.P.H., M.S.
"Prevalence of diabetes mellitus in Calcutta schoolteachers and its relationship with cardiovascular risk as assessed by the ASCVD model"
Rahaf Shishani
Mentor: Bethany Cummings, D.V.M., Ph.D.
"Defining regulation of 14-3-3-eta expression by beta cell GLP1R signaling"
Nicolle K. Sweeney
Mentor: William M Ridgway, M.D.
"Reversal of T1D by agonistic anti-TLR4 antibody is mediated via TRIF/IRF3 signaling"
Awards are given for outstanding proposals. Awardees receive $7,000 to support their project.
- Support and promote collaborative translational research with focus on infectious diseases and endocrinology
- M.D. physician researcher investigators at all levels.
2024 Awardee
John C. Yoon, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Endocrinology
Title of Proposed Study: "Finding new approaches to harness brown fat activity for liver health"