2025 Paper of the Year – Basic Research Category
Ken Yamada, Ph.D. RTI, UMass Chan Medical School “Extended Nucleic Acid (exNA): A Novel Platform Technology Development for Enhancing siRNA Potency in Vivo” Paper of the Year: Enhancing siRNA efficacy in vivo with extended nucleic acid backbones https://doi.org/10.1038/s41587-024-02336-7 Biography: Dr. Ken Yamada is an ...
2025 Patient Advocacy Award
Daniel Knight, PhD Candidate Carleton University “Strengthening Research, Advocacy, and Collaboration in ALS: The Dual Perspective of a Scientist and Community Member” Biography Daniel Knight is a fourth-year PhD candidate in chemistry at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, where he is developing a novel ...
2025 Dr. Alan M. Gewirtz Memorial Scholarship for Graduate Students
Cristina Hofman, PhD Candidate UT Southwestern Medical Center “Nuclear Argonaute:miRNA complexes recognize target sequences within chromatin-associated RNA and silence gene expression” Biography: Cristina received her B.S. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Trinity University and joined David Corey’s lab at the University of Texas ...
2025 Mary Ann Liebert Publishers Inc., Young Investigator Award
Hien Tran Zhao, Ph.D. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. “Harnessing antisense oligonucleotide for the treatment of neurological disorders” Biography: Dr. Zhao has over 15 years of experience in Neuroscience Drug Discovery. She is currently an Executive Director of Neurology Research at Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a company ...
2025 OTS Lifetime Achievement Award Winner – Prof. Wojtek Stec
Prof. Wojtek Stec (15 October 1940 - 4 December 2024) Biography: An outstanding chemist and a co-founder of Polish phosphorus chemistry of bioorganic compounds, Professor Stec was a distinguished scientific leader and a dedicated mentor. His research interests centered on bioorganic chemistry, with a ...
2025 OTS Lifetime Achievement Award Winner – Brett Monia, PhD
Brett Monia, Ph.D. Chief Executive Officer, Ionis Pharmaceuticals "Pioneering RNA-Targeted Oligonucleotide Therapeutics: A 35-Year Journey" Biography: Dr. Monia is the chief executive officer, a member of the board of directors and a founding scientist of Ionis Pharmaceuticals. His contributions at Ionis include research into ...
2025 President’s Special Award
Marc Lemaitre, Ph.D. M_L Consult Biography: Dr. Lemaitre is very experienced with and has an in-depth knowledge of oligonucleotide therapeutics, mainly focusing on Chemistry, Manufacturing and Control [CMC]. He holds a Master’s degree in Organic Chemistry and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry, with extensive training ...
2025 Dr. Alan M. Gewirtz Memorial Scholarship for Postdoctoral Fellows and Junior Industrial Professionals
Sarah E. Pierce, Ph.D. Broad Institute “An approach to disease-agnostic therapeutic genome editing” Biography: Sarah Pierce is a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. David Liu's lab at the Broad Institute. She completed her PhD in Cancer Biology at Stanford University in the labs of Dr. ...
Targeting ALS-FUS: Early Insights from the Jacifusen (ION363) Case Series
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) remains one of the most devastating diseases and is the most common motor disease among adults, affecting around 55,000 people in the US, Europe, and Japan. More than 40 genes have been linked to ALS, providing a valuable opportunity for ...
