2025 Research & Career Development Award Recipients

AASLD Foundation’s Research & Career Development Awards are one to three-year awards that support innovative research in liver diseases, career development for early career investigators, and specialized training for front-line providers treating liver patients.

Pinnacle Research Award in Liver Diseases

Jaspreet S. Sandhu, MD, PhD
Massachusetts General Hospital
Project Title: In Vivo CRISPR Screens at Scale: Dissecting Steatosis Across Metabolic Contexts
Mentor: Jonathan Weissman, PhD

Haiguang Wang, PhD
University of Minnesota
Project Title: Physiological Microbial Exposure and Insulin Receptor in Tfh cells Fortify Intestinal Immunity Against MASH
Mentor: Xavier Revelo, PhD

Clinical, Translational, and Outcomes Research Award in Liver Diseases

Joseph C. Ahn, MD, MS
Mayo Clinic
Project Title: AI-Driven Synthetic Data Generation for Enhanced Prognostic Modeling and Clinical Trial Design in Alcohol-associated Hepatitis
Mentor: Vijay H. Shah, MD, FAASLD

Bridge Award

Lily Dara, MD
University of Southern California
Project Title: Mechanisms of Immune-mediated Liver Injury from Checkpoint Inhibitor

Ryan L. McCarthy, PhD
University of Washington
Project Title: Modulating heterochromatin to improve function of hepatocytes reprogrammed from human fibroblasts

Xavier Revelo, PhD
University of Minnesota
Project Title: Immune mechanisms of bariatric surgery against steatohepatitis

Pilot Research Award in Liver Diseases

Lin Jia, PhD
The University of Texas at Dallas
Project Title: The protective role of vagus nerve stimulation in alcoholic steatohepatitis in rats
Mentor: Mack Mitchell, MD, FAASLD

Michael D. Thompson, MD, PhD
Washington University in St. Louis
Project Title: Maternal Diet Modifies Susceptibility to Biliary Atresia in Offspring
Mentor: Nicholas Davidson, MD, DSc, AGAF

Gupta Family Pilot Award in PSC Research

Burcin Özdirik, MD
University of California, San Diego
Project Title: The impact of specific bacterial virulence factors on primary sclerosing cholangitis
Mentor: Bernd Schnabl, MD, FAASLD

The 2025 Gupta Family Pilot Research Award is made possible through the Gupta Family Research Fund and donors to the AASLD Foundation.

Frank J. Tusa Pilot Award for Research in Hepatic Encephalopathy

Adam Buckholz, MD, MS
Weill Cornell
Project Title: Melatonin to Improve Sleep Physiology and Cognition in Hepatic Encephalopathy: A Pilot Crossover Study
Mentor: Robert Brown, MD, MPH, FAASLD

The 2025 Frank J. Tusa Pilot Award for Research in Hepatic Encephalopathy is made possible through a generous contribution given to establish this award and unrestricted donations from AASLD Foundation donors.

Anna S. Lok Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Award

Pedro Ochoa-Allemant, MD, MSCE
University of Pennsylvania

The 2025 Anna S. Lok Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Fellowship Award is made possible through the Anna S. Lok Fund for Excellence in Research and Training and donors to the AASLD Foundation.

Joseph Bloomer Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Award

Matthew Dukewich, MD, PharmD, MS
University of Southern California

The 2025 Joseph Bloomer Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Fellowship Award is made possible through a bequest from the estate of Dr. Joseph Bloomer and donors to the AASLD Foundation.

Kimberly A. Brown Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Award

Yee Hui Yeo, MD
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

The 2025 Kimberly A. Brown Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Fellow Award is made possible through the Kimberly A. Brown Fund and donors to the AASLD Foundation.

Ashwani K. Singal Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Award For Research in Alcohol-Associated Liver Disease

Sarah E. Uttal, MD
University of Michigan

The 2025 Ashwani K. Singal Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Fellow Award is made possible through the Singal Family Fund and donors to the AASLD Foundation.

Vinay Sundaram Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Award

Harry Sutton, MBBS
Children's Hospital Los Angeles

The 2025 Vinay Sundaram Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Fellow Award is made possible through the Vinay Sundaram Legacy Fund and donors to the AASLD Foundation.