We support original scientific research in gender-specific medicine. The Foundation for Gender-Specific Medicine provides fellowships to untenured, young faculty members with the goal of fostering their interest in gender-specific medicine at the beginning of their investigative careers.
The Foundation for Gender-Specific Medicine is proud to showcase our grantee winners and their achievements since 2011.
Explore Scientific Breakthroughs! Click on a name to see our fellows contributions to gender-specific medicine.
| Photo | Name | Award | Year | Amount | Research Study & Achievement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Yukiko Kunitomo, MD, MHS | Johns Hopkins Pilot Grant Award | 2025 | $50,000 | How comorbid conditions especially anemia and iron deficiency affect outcomes in people living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), with a focus on sex differences and personalized care. |
 | Kelley Yan, MD, PhD | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2025 | $50,000 | Intestinal stem cell biology and how the gut regenerates and heals after injury. Her Yan Lab discovered a previously unrecognized population of gut stem cells, reshaping our understanding of intestinal regeneration and leading to new therapeutic technologies. |
 | Orna Issler, PhD | NYU, Dorothy Lambiase Derchin Awardee | 2025 | $60,000 | How sex differences and non-coding RNAs shape vulnerability to stress, depression, and postpartum depression, using both human and animal models. The Issler Lab has uncovered pronounced molecular sex differences in depression in the brain and blood. |
 | Jennifer Lillian Small-Saunders, MD, PhD | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2024 | $50,000 | Investigate infectious diseases like malaria especially in pregnant women with the hope of developing new drugs to fight the disease. Award is instrumental in helping the Small-Saunders Lab get setup and off the ground. |
 | Liisa Hantsoo, PhD | Johns Hopkins SCORE Pilot Grant Award | 2024 | $50,000 | Researching Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), a mood disorder affecting millions of women worldwide. Per year, it affects more women than postpartum depression. |
 | International Bone Women’s Health Armenia, Dr. John Bilezikian | International Award | 2024 | $50,000 | Support of the Osteoporosis Center of Armenia; to determine baseline prevalence of osteoporosis and fracture in Armenian women ages 45-65 compared with older women. |
 | International Society of Gender Medicine | International Award | 2024 | $50,000 | Support educational fellowships to IGM conferences, provide administrative and website support to this central international organization for GSM. |
 | Joohyung Lee, PhD | International Awards Monash University, Australia | 2024 | $35,000 | Inhibition of SRY as a male-specific therapy for Parkinson’s disease. |
 | Hanrui Zhang, PhD | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2024 | $60,000 | Sex differences in the behavior of carotid artery plaques. |
 | Kamaria Cherise Cayton Vaught, MD | Johns Hopkins University | 2023 | $50,000 | Biomarkers for oocyte age-related decline that indicate limited reproductive viability. |
| International Society of Gender Medicine | International Awards | 2023 | $34,000 | Support educational fellowships to IGM conferences, provide administrative and website support to this central international organization for GSM. |
| International Bone Women’s Health Armenia, John Bilezikian, MD | International Awards | 2023 | $50,000 | Support of the Osteoporosis Center of Armenia; to determine baseline prevalence of osteoporosis and fracture in Armenian women ages 45-65 compared with older women. |
 | Catherine Simpson, MD | Johns Hopkins University | 2022 | $50,000 | Circulating interleukin-6 (IL-6) is associated with measures of disease severity and clinical worsening in pediatric pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). |
 | Elana Jaye Bernstein, MD | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2022 | $60,000 | Impact of autoimmune diseases on pregnancy. |
 | James Gordy, PhD | Johns Hopkins University | 2022 | $50,000 | Analyzing sex differences with novel (new) tuberculosis therapeutic vaccines. |
 | Marwah Abdalla, MD, MPH | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2021 | $60,000 | Race, gender and Covid susceptibility. |
 | Delivette Castor, PhD | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2021 | $60,000 | Infectious disease in marginalized populations. |
 | Nisha Aggarwal Gilotra, MD | Johns Hopkins University | 2021 | $50,000 | Myocarditis after covid vaccination. |
 | Monica R Mugnier, PhD | Johns Hopkins University | 2021 | $50,000 | B cells and adaptive immunity. |
| Joohyung Lee, PhD | International Awards, Monash University, Australia | 2021 | $50,000 | Relationship of sex to differences in immunity and susceptibility to viral infections. |
 | Andrea Cignerella, MD for Dr. Chiara Baggio | International Awards, University of Padua, Italy | 2021 | $25,000 | The response of cells lining blood vessels have a different response to inflammatory agents in males and females. |
 | Shannon Wood, PhD, MSc | Johns Hopkins University | 2020 | $50,000 | Women and girls’ empowerment in reproductive health. |
 | Fenna Sille, PhD | Johns Hopkins University | 2020 | $50,000 | Sex differences and the cytokine storm associated with COVID-19 mortality. |
 | Kristina Montemayor, MD, MHS | Johns Hopkins University | 2020 | $50,000 | Sex differences in cystic fibrosis. |
 | Kathryn Fitzgerald, ScD | Johns Hopkins University | 2020 | $50,000 | How genetics, metabolic changes, hormones, diet, environmental factors and comorbid conditions affect the severity of MS symptoms. |
 | Jennifer E. Amengual, MD | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2019 | $60,000 | Impact of biological sex on recurrence of lymphoma. |
 | Gabrielle Page-Wilson, MD | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2019 | $60,000 | Equity and inclusion in the field of nutrition and obesity. |
 | Kristin Voegtline, PhD | Johns Hopkins University | 2016 | $50,000 | Premenstrual symptoms across the lifespan. |
 | Hilda E. Fernandez, MD | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2018 | $60,000 | Outcome of kidney transplant in patients with corona virus. |
 | Mark J.Kohr, PhD, FAHA | Johns Hopkins University | 2017 | $50,000 | Protecting the female heart from reperfusion injury. |
 | Elaine Wan, MD, FACC, FAHA, FHRS | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2017 | $60,000 | Long term complications of covid. |
 | Noel Mueller, PhD | Johns Hopkins University | 2017 | $50,000 | Categorization and report of human microbiome data. |
 | Nathalie Moise, MD, MS | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2016 | $60,000 | Distress, coping behaviors and preferences for support during Covid epidemic. |
 | Emily J. Tsai, MD, FACC, FAHA | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2016 | $60,000 | Molecular signaling in heart failure. |
 | Rosanne Rouf, MD | Johns Hopkins University | 2016 | $50,000 | Inhibiting the chronic fibrosis of chronic disease. |
 | Chen Wang, PhD | Birch-Derchin Scholar New York University | 2016 | $25,000 | How the brain differs between males and females on a biological level. |
 | Jennifer Mammen, MD | Johns Hopkins University | 2012 | $50,000 | Thyroid function and fitness in older men and women. |
 | Kendall Moseley, MD | Johns Hopkins University | 2012 | $50,000 | Skeletal adverse effects related to immune checkpoint inhibitors used in cancer therapy. |
 | Marlene Williams, MD | Johns Hopkins University | 2012 | $50,000 | Management of men and women with chronic coronary artery disease. |
 | Jonathan T. Lu, MD | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2011 | $60,000 | Genetics and cardiomyopathy. |
 | Jon T. Giles, MD | Columbia University, M. Irené Ferrer Award | 2011 | $60,000 | Role of inflammation in the pathogenesis of atherosclerotic heart disease. |