2026 ASRM Research Institute Grant Awardees

2026 ASRM Rescuing Research Grant

Amander Clark, PhD (UCLA )

Title: “Defining the Molecular Origins of Human Germ Cells to Improve In Vitro Gametogenesis"

Dr. Amander Clark is a Professor of Molecular Cell and Developmental Biology at UCLA and the Founding Director of the UCLA Center for Reproductive Science, Health and Education. Professor Clark is an award-winning scientist and internationally recognized expert on topics in stem cell biology, developmental biology and reproductive science. Her current interests are in ovarian health, formation of the ovarian reserve, and the creation of next generation tools and technologies using stem cells aimed at improving health and health-span. Professor Clark has authored more than 100 scientific articles with over 20,000 citations of her published work. She is regularly invited to appear as a subject matter expert for the New York Times, the Economist, the New Yorker and Public Radio. From 2023-2024 Professor Clark served as President of the International Society for Stem Cell Research, a global non-profit that promotes excellence in stem cell science and applications to human health, and from 2023-2025 she served on the National Academy of Science Engineering and Medicine Health Science Policy Board. She is currently serving on the executive committee for the Center for the Study of Women/Barbra Streisand Center at UCLA. Through her research, service and teaching, Professor Clark is committed to scientific practices that are informed by multidisciplinary research and engagement with the public.

2026 ASRM Rescuing Research Grant

Christina Farr, PhD (Case Western Reserve University)

Title: “Investigating the microbiome and inflammation in the vaginal microenvironment ”

Dr. Christina Farr is an Assistant Professor of Pathology and Member of the Center for Global Health and Diseases at Case Western Reserve University. She received her PhD from the University of British Columbia and completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Manitoba. Dr. Farr’s research is focused on host-microbe interactions that influence human urogenital health and disease, with a particular interest in cervicovaginal innate immunity and the microbiome.

2026 ASRM Rescuing Research Award

Shruthi Mahalingaiah, MD, MS, FACOG (Harvard University)

Title: “Climate factors, racial/ethnic disparities and menstrual cycle health”

Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah is the Mark and Catherine Winkler associate professor of environmental, reproductive, and women’s health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She serves clinically as a physician at the Massachusetts General Hospital in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, where she specializes in ovulation disorders, reproductive endocrinology, and infertility. Her research seeks to understand the links between environmental and modifiable risk factors on human reproduction and gynecological diseases. Dr. Mahalingaiah is the creator of the Ovulation and Menstruation Health (OM) Study and one of the principal investigators of the Apple Women’s Health Study.