KidneyCure Announces 2021 Grant Recipients

Highlights 

• KidneyCure (the ASN Foundation) is honored to continue its support of investigators committed to advancing kidney health. Building on decades of success, KidneyCure makes it possible to improve knowledge and treatment by  identifying and funding high-impact projects. 

• Investigators funded by KidneyCure are making a difference in key areas that  impact care for millions. KidneyCure is proud to support excellence and innovation, and to extend the advances that the foundation has propelled since its  inception. 

Washington, DC (July 1, 2021) —The 2021 grant recipients, listed below, will extend  this trajectory of achievement, and continue to improve quality of life for those living with  kidney diseases. 

Transition to Independence Grant Program 

The Transition to Independence Grants Program helps young investigators achieve  independent research careers and is supported by contributions provided by ASN, Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., and individual donors. 

Carl W. Gottschalk Research Scholar Grants 

Eirini Kefalogianni, PhD 

Washington University in St. Louis 

Immunomodulatory Roles of Circulating TNFR1/2 in Diabetic Nephropathy 

Ronak Lakhia, MD 

University of Texas Southwestern 

Role of Cis-Regulatory Elements in Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease 

Eugene Lin, MD, MS, FASN 

Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California 

The Impact of Medicare Advantage on Patients with End-Stage Kidney Disease 

Jennie Lin, MD, MS 

Northwestern University 

Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress and Macrophage Function in APOL1 Nephropathy 

Alla Mitrofanova, PhD 

University of Miami 

STING as a Potential Therapeutic Target for Diabetic Kidney Disease 

Evan C. Ray, MD, PhD, FASN 

University of Pittsburgh 

Regulation of Divalent Cation Homeostasis by Muc1 

Yanhua Wang, PhD 

Emory University 

Roles of Aldosterone and Phosphatases in Vasopressin Escape 

John Merrill Grant in Transplantation 

John Yongjoon Choi, MD 

Brigham and Women’s Hospital 

Harnessing Regulatory CD8+ T Cells to Suppress Antibody-Mediated Rejection 

Norman Siegel Research Scholar Grant 

Meredith Posner Schuh, MD 

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center 

Bridging the Gap of Late Gestation Human Nephrogenesis Using a Non-Human Primate  Model 

OHF-KidneyCure Research Scholar Grant 

Tanecia Mitchell, PhD 

University of Alabama at Birmingham 

The Impact of Crystalluria on Immunity during Kidney Stone Formation 

Ben J. Lipps Research Fellowship Program 

The Ben J. Lipps Research Fellowship Program supports nephrology fellows who will  advance the understanding of kidney biology and disease and is fully endowed by  contributions provided by Fresenius Medical Care, ASN, the American Renal Patient  Care Foundation, Inc., Amgen, Baxter, and the PKD Foundation. 

Ben J. Lipps Research Fellows 

Fabian Bock, MD, PhD 

Vanderbilt University Medical Center 

Rac1 is Required for Renal Tubular Function and Repair 

Amanda J. Clark, MD

University of Texas Southwestern  

NAD+ Biosynthesis Impairment in Acute Kidney Injury 

Irma Husain, MBBS, MD 

Duke University  

Role of Macrophage AIF-1 in Ischemia Reperfusion Injury and Kidney Allograft Rejection 

Felix Poppelaars, MD, PhD 

University of Colorado Denver 

Molecular Imaging: A Novel Tool for Noninvasive Tracking of Disease Activity in Lupus  Nephritis 

Ghazal Z. Quinn, MD 

University of Pennsylvania  

Immune Cells in Renal Fibrosis and Chronic Kidney Disease 

Sharon Anderson Research Fellow 

Mary Hannan, PhD, NP 

University of Illinois Chicago 

The Influence of Sedentary Behavior on Health Outcomes in Individuals with Chronic  Kidney Disease 

Jared J. Grantham Research Fellow 

Enrico Cocchi, MD 

Columbia University 

Somatic Mutations in Kidney Disease 

Dimitrios G. Oreopoulos Research Fellow 

Dan Wang, PhD 

Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center 

The Role of Glomerular Basement Membrane Glycation and Stiffening in Development of  Proteinuria 

George B. Rathmann Research Fellow 

Konstantin Deutsch, MD 

Boston Children’s Hospital 

Recapitulating the Human SRNS Phenotype in CRISPR/Cas9 Zebrafish Models by  Circumventing NMD 

Donald E. Wesson Research Fellow 

Caroline M. Hsu, MD 

Tufts Medical Center 

Predictors of Peritoneal Dialysis Technique Survival

William and Sandra Bennett Clinical Scholars Program 

The William and Sandra Bennett Clinical Scholars Program provides funding to clinician  educators to conduct a project to advance all facets of nephrology education and  teaching. 

Suzanne Boyle, MD, MS 

Temple University 

Creation and Validation of a Tool to Assess Clinical Reasoning in Nephrology Fellows 

ASN Pre-Doctoral Fellowship Program 

The ASN Pre-Doctoral Fellowship Program provides funding to early career-stage PhD  students to conduct original research projects and make contributions to the  understanding of kidney biology and disease. 

Sarah N. Lipp, BS 

Purdue University 

Identifying the Role of the Interstitial Extracellular Matrix Network During Murine Renal  Development 

Elinor Mannon, BA 

Augusta University Research Institute 

Oral NaHCO3 Alters K+ Balance and Promotes Insulin Resistance 

Riana Parvez, MS 

University of Southern California 

Lineage Convergence in the Regulation of Fluid Homeostasis in the Kidney To learn more about the 2021 recipients, please visit KidneyCure.org. 

KidneyCure was established in 2012 and funds the Transition to Independence Grants  Program, the Ben J. Lipps Research Fellowship Program, the William and Sandra  Bennett Clinical Scholars Program, the ASN Pre-Doctoral Fellowship Program, and the  American Society of Nephrology-Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Program.  Since ASN began funding grants in 1996, the society and the foundation have awarded  more than $45 million in funding for cutting edge research. For more information on  KidneyCure or its grant programs, please visit www.kidneycure.org or contact  [email protected] or 202.640.4660. 

Since 1966, ASN has been leading the fight to prevent, treat, and cure kidney diseases  throughout the world by educating health professionals and scientists, advancing 

research and innovation, communicating new knowledge, and advocating for the highest  quality care for patients. ASN has more than 20,000 members representing 131 countries. For more information, please visit www.asn-online.org or contact the society at  202-640-4660. 

# # #