ALF Announces 2024 Recipients of Liver Scholar and Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Awards

Nine early career scientists awarded grants covering basic and translational liver disease research

FAIRFIELD, N.J., Jan. 31, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- American Liver Foundation (ALF) is thrilled to announce the recipients of its prestigious 2024 Liver Scholar and Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Awards. These awards are part of ALF's continued commitment to fund groundbreaking liver research and support early-career scientists dedicated to better understanding the biology of the healthy liver, discovering mechanisms of liver diseases, and advancing innovative treatments for liver conditions that affect 100 million Americans.

Our ALF Research Program supported 20 early career scientists and cutting-edge research projects in 2024 for a total of $950,000. We are so pleased to support the future of liver research by funding basic and translational research projects through these two new Liver Scholar awards and seven Post-doctoral Fellowships this year, in addition to the three Liver Scholars who are completing their second year of groundbreaking research for projects we funded in 2023. Our new Pilot Research Awards program also funded eight highly innovative projects in primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), autoimmune hepatitis (AIH), and biliary atresia (BA) in 2024.

"We are proud to fund nearly $1 million in support for these exceptional early-career scientists who are developing innovative strategies and solutions through their research that address numerous liver diseases," said Lorraine Stiehl, CEO of the American Liver Foundation. "This year's recipients include talented researchers who are focused on advancing our understanding of liver diseases, from slowing down metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) progression to finding solutions for chronic liver conditions like hepatitis and cirrhosis."

This year's two recipients receiving the 2024 Liver Scholar Awards, which includes $225K in funding over three years, includes:   

• Berfin D. Azizoglu, PhD, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, who will investigate the Restructuring of the Hepatic Lobule Vasculature in Acute Chemical Liver Injury.
  
  
• Vijay Pandyarajan, MD, PhD, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, whom research focuses on Investigating the Role of CARD9 in Gut Barrier Function and MASLD Progression.

Seven recipients receiving Postdoctoral Fellowship Research awards totaling $25K per awardee goes to early-career postdoctoral researchers for advanced studies that bridge the gap between basic research and clinical practice. This year's recipients and their supported projects include:

• Matthew Carson, PhD, University of Pittsburgh, Dysbiosis in the Gut-Liver Axis Drives Bone Loss during Cholestatic Liver Disease.
  
  
• Ying Chen, PhD, Baylor College of Medicine, Spatiotemporal Regulation of Lipid Metabolism in MAFLD.
  
  
• Marcos Fernandez Fondevila, PhD, University of California, San Diego, Deciphering the Role of Intestinal Senescence in Alcohol-Associated Liver Disease: from Characterization to Therapy and Mechanism.
  
  
• Priyanka Karmokar, PhD, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Neonatal Intermittent Hypoxia in Normal Liver Development and Pediatric Hepatoblastoma.
  
  
• Chang Kyung (Joanna) Kim, MD, PhD, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, The Role of Hypoxia in WNT/β-catenin-Mediated Regulation of Liver Zonation and Regeneration.
  
  
• Marti Ortega Ribera, PhD, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) & Harvard Medical School, Mechanisms of neutrophil extracellular traps in hepatocyte damage in ACLF.
  
  
• Prasanna Venkatesh Ramachandran, MD, PhD, Boston's Children Hospital, The Role of Primary Cilia in Hepatobiliary developments and disease.

"We applaud these young scientists and believe it's important to provide the critical funding needed to support their groundbreaking research that will further our understanding of liver biology and disease," said Helene Jordan, PhD, ALF's National Senior Director of Research Program Management. "These young scientists could possibly discover pathological mechanisms and therapeutic targets that may lead to solutions and cures that we have needed for decades and would ultimately improve the lives of those affected by liver disease. We look forward to seeing the contributions these scholars and postdocs will make to the scientific community and the liver research field."

The Liver Scholar Award is designed to provide exceptional young investigators committed to pursue a career in liver research with the financial support they need to complete impactful research that can significantly advance the field and allow them to compete for research grants from the National Institutes of Health. Additionally, ALF's Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Award program continues to foster the next generation of liver researchers by providing a supplementary stipend to promising trainees, allowing them to focus on their cutting-edge investigational work on liver biology and disease and their transition to an independent research career in the liver field. A Grants Review Committee comprised of three co-chairs and 40 other basic researchers and physician scientists, along with a Liver Research Patients Group, reviewed a record number of grant applications. Reviewers followed a rigorous process and scoring guidelines modeled after best practices established by the National Institute of Health.

These grants are made possible through the generous support of ALF donors, partnerships, and ongoing fundraising initiatives. ALF continues to work toward its mission of preventing, treating, and curing liver disease by providing funding for high-impact research, promoting liver health education, and advocating for public policy that addresses the needs of all those affected by liver disease.

For more information about ALF's research award program, visit liverfoundation.org/research. To be notified of future grant announcements, please join our research mailing list.

About the American Liver Foundation
American Liver Foundation (ALF) is a national community of patients, caregivers and medical professionals dedicated to helping people improve their liver health. Providing guidance and life-saving resources, we are a beacon for the 100 million Americans affected by liver disease. We advocate for patients and families, fund medical research and educate the public about liver wellness and disease prevention. We bring people together through our educational programs and events and create a network of support that lasts a lifetime. ALF is the largest organization focused on all liver diseases and the trusted voice for patients and families living with liver disease. For more information visit www.liverfoundation.org or call: 1 800 GO LIVER (800-465-4837).

SOURCE American Liver Foundation