2024 ASRM RI Grant Recipients

Discovery & Innovation Grant Cycle

• Lubna Pal, MBBS, MRCOG (Yale School of Medicine)
  “Examining mechanisms for the differential risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy in spontaneous versus ART pregnancies”
  

• Chao Zhou, PhD (Washington University - St Louis)
  “Facilitating in vitro fertilization using label-free, time-lapse 3D optical coherence microscopy”
  

Pilot & Exploratory Grant Cycle

• Berna Sozen, PhD (Yale School of Medicine)
  “A 3D cell-based platform to study implantation errors as a result of endometriosis”
  

• Heidi Cook-Andersen, MD, PhD (University of California San Diego)
  “Non-destructive assessment of human embryo implantation potential using Raman spectroscopy"

• Rossella Cannarella, MD, PhD (Cleveland Clinic Foundation)
  “Role of Low Sperm IGF2 Expression Levels in Male Infertility: A New Cause of Poor Early Embryo Development"

• Jaroslav Slamecka, PhD (University of California San Diego)
   “Dissecting the distinct contributions of transcription and RNA turnover to conversion of primed to naïve human pluripotent stem cells and their differentiation into trophectoderm"
  (Supported by an endowment from the Asia-Pacific Biomedical Research Foundation)

• Abey Eapen, MBBS, PhD (University of Iowa)
   “A Pilot Study to identify the Autoimmune, Inflammatory and Epigenetic Disruptors - Critical Mechanisms leading to Unexplained Recurrent Miscarriage - The PLATINUM study"
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by Progyny)

• Aileen Portugal, MD (Washington University St Louis)
   “Language Matters: Exploring the Impact of Language Concordance on Fertility Treatment Progression"
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by EMD Serono)

• Austin Johnson, MD (University of Washington)
   “Decisional regret regarding pre-operative fertility preservation choices following gender-affirming surgery among transgender men/gender non-binary persons"
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by EMD Serono)

• Christine Metz, PhD (The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research)
   “Menstrual effluent as a non-invasive tool to define and detect chronic endometritis in patients with unexplained infertility"
  

• Staci Marbin, MD (University of Miami)
   “Breaking Barriers to Fertility Preservation: A Comprehensive Study of Diverse Cancer Patients at an NCI-Designated Center”
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by Progyny)
  

• Alyssa Kosturakis, MD, MS (Cedars-Sinai Medical Center)
   “Health Disparities in Hispanic Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome”
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by Progyny)
  

• Michelle Volovsky, MD (Yale School of Medicine)
   “The impact of environmental toxins on the ovarian follicular microenvironment and reproductive outcomes”
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by Ferring Pharmaceuticals)
  

• Salomeh Salari, MD, MS (University of Iowa)
  “Effects of an oxygen content gradient on preimplantation human embryo development, physiology, and aneuploidy"
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by Ferring Pharmaceuticals)
  

• Emily Smith, MSN, CRNP (Penn Medicine)
  “An APP’s Effect on Hormone Replacement Therapy for Radiation-Induced Primary Ovarian Insufficiency After Cervix Cancer Treatment"
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by EMD Serono)

2023 ASRM RI Grant Recipients

Discovery & Innovation Grant Cycle

• Marina Peluffo, PhD (Centro de Investigaciones Endocrinológicas)
   “Chemokine signaling within the human cumulus oocyte complex: a critical mediator of fertility”  

Pilot & Exploratory Grant Cycle

• Bluma Lesch, MD, PhD (Yale School of Medicine)
  “Natural variation in epigenetic poising in sperm of men undergoing assisted reproduction"
  
  
• Alisha Tolani, MD (University of California, San Francisco)
  “The PIoUS Study: Sperm Preparation prior to IntraUterine insemination”
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by EMD Serono)
  
  
• Patricia Hershberger, PhD, MSN, RN, FNP-BC, FAAN (University of Michigan)
   “A Developmental Study to Extend the Donor Conception Tool to Empower ParentaL TeLling (TELL) and Talking for Use During Pregnancy”
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by EMD Serono)
   
• Audrey J. Gaskins, ScD (Emory University Rollins School of Public Health)
   “Microplastics and Male Fertility”
  (Supported by Legacy, Inc)
  
  
• Lisa Vrooman, PhD (Oregon Health & Science University – Oregon National Primate Research Center)
   “Placental PREP Function in Spontaneous and Assisted Reproductive Technology Pregnancies"
  (Supported by The Maya's Wings Foundation)
  
  
• Winifred Mak MD, PhD (UT Health Sciences at San Antonio)
   “A study to elucidate the role of abnormal sperm DNA fragmentation in human recurrent pregnancy loss"
  (Supported by the Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Association)
  
  
• Courtney Marsh MD, MPH (University of Kansas School of Medicine)
   “Attitudes Towards Sperm Donation in Black Cisgender Men"
  (ASRM Access to Care Grant)
  
  
• Xavier Santamaria, MD, PhD (The Carlos Simon Foundation)
  “Effect of CD133 Bone Marrow Derived Stem Cells on the maternal-fetal interface in patients with Asherman Syndrome"
  (Supported by an endowment from the Asia-Pacific Biomedical Research Foundation)

2022 ASRM RI Grant Recipients

Discovery & Innovation Grant Cycle

• Jun Wu, PhD (University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center)
  “Studying molecular mechanisms underlying human implantation and implantation failure using a pluripotent stem cell blastocyst model”  

Pilot & Exploratory Grant Cycle

• Karen Schindler, PhD (Rutgers University)
  “Determining Sirtuin 7 mechanisms that protect age-related genome stability in oocytes”
  
  
• Jamie Lo, MD, MCR (Oregon Health and Science University)
  “Identifying Epigenetic Changes in Spermatozoa of Sexually Mature Rhesus Macaques Following Chronic Marijuana Use”   
  
  
• Joshua Halpern, MD, MS (Northwestern University)
  “A Pilot, Randomized Clinical Trial of Universal Home Semen Analysis Screening for the Evaluation of Male Infertility”
  
  
• Tsegaselassie Workalemahu PhD, MSc (University of Utah)
  “Inherited Genetic Variants and Unexplained Recurrent Pregnancy Loss”
  (Supported by the Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Association)  
  
  
• Rachel West, PhD (Auburn University)
  “Using a 3D human trophoblast stem cell model to investigate the sexual dimorphism of the placental innate immune response”
  (Supported by an endowment from the Asia-Pacific Biomedical Research Foundation)  
  
  
• Brent Monseur, MD, ScM (Stanford University)
   “Drivers of assisted reproductive technology use and associated reproductive and mental health outcomes in women by sexual orientation - results from national longitudinal cohorts”
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by EMD Serono)  
  
  
• Zachary Walker, MD (Brigham and Women’s Hospital)
  “Evaluation of sperm centriole distribution and composition on fertility outcomes in men with and without male factor infertility – a prospective study”
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by EMD Serono)
  
  
• Kathryn Coyne, MD (University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center/Case Western Reserve University)
  “Altered endometrial cell progesterone responsiveness in the etiology of endometriosis and infertility”   
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by Ferring)
  
  
• Riwa Sabbagh, MD (Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Boston IVF)
  “Concurrent in situ characterization of chromosome and gene expression to create a three-dimensional map of discarded human blastocysts” 
  (Supported by an Educational Grant provided by Ferring)

2020 ASRM RI Grant Recipients

Small Grant Cycle

• Ahmed Balboula, PhD (University of Missouri)
  “Determining if Reduced Autophagic Activity is Responsible for DNA Damage-induced Aneuploidy in Aged Oocytes”   
  
  
• Karen Berkowitz, MD (University of Iowa)
  “CHTF18 Regulates Meiotic Cohesion and DNA Crossover formation to Safeguard the Quality of the Ovarian Reserve”   
  
  
• Tracy Harrison, MD (University of California San Diego)
  “Effects of Androgen on the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Gonadal Axis in Transgender Men”   
  
  
• Winifred Mak, MD, PhD (University of Texas Austin)
  “Establishment and Characterization of Miscarriage-specific Human Trophoblast Stem Cells”   
  
  
• Rachel Mejia, DO (University of Iowa)
  “Randomized Controlled Trial of Combined Letrozole and Clomiphene (CLC II) Versus Letrozole Alone for Women with Anovulation”   
  
  
• Reshef Tal, MD, PhD (Yale University School of Medicine)
  “The Role of Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Recurrent Implantation Failure”

2019 ASRM RI Grant Recipients

Large Grant Cycle

• Heidi Cook-Andersen, MD, PhD/Louise Laurent, MD, PhD (co-PI’s) (University of California, San Diego)
  "Defining the molecular basis of successful implantation and pregnancy of the human embryo to improve IVF success"
   
• Werner Neuhausser, MD, PhD (Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center)
  "Identification of transcriptomic and epigenetic coordinates for post-implantation human embryonic development"
   
• Gary D. Smith, PhD, HCLD (University of Michigan)
  "Human Embryo Mosaicism: Towards Understanding Longitudinal and Developmental Genetic Concordance Between Embryonic Trophectoderm, Inner Cell Mass, and Stem Cells"

Small Grant Cycle

• Rachel Weinerman, MD (Case Western Reserve University)
  “Impact of repeated blastocyst vitrification and trophectoderm biopsy on embryonic gene expression and embryonic development in a mouse model”
   
• Eve Feinberg, MD (Northwestern University)
  “Characterizing Fertility Concerns among Women in Academic Medicine and Evaluating the Economic Impact of Fertility Preservation for Deferred Reproduction”
   
• Lynae M. Brayboy, MD (Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University)
  “Dysfunctional MDR-1 disrupts mitochondrial homeostasis in the oocyte and ovary”
   
• Joseph Letourneau, MD (University of Utah) 
  "Effect of Alkylating Agent Chemotherapy on the Uterus of Young Adult Cancer Survivors: Exploring the Uterus as a New Frontier for Fertility Preservation"
   
• Amanda Kallen, MD (Yale University School of Medicine)
  “Noncoding-RNA-Mediated Mechanisms for Regulation of Follicular Quantity and Quality”