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Announcing the 2023 McKnight Brain Research Foundation Innovator Awards in Cognitive Aging and Memory Loss recipients

Announcing the 2023 McKnight Brain Research Foundation Innovator Awards in Cognitive Aging and Memory Loss recipients

The American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR) and the McKnight Brain Research Foundation (MBRF) are pleased to announce the 2023 recipients of The McKnight Brain Research Foundation Innovator Awards in Cognitive Aging and Memory Loss: Denise Cai, PhD of Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Christoph Thaiss, PhD, of the University of Pennsylvania.

Now in its third year, the Innovator Awards aim to build a cadre of outstanding research scientists across the United States to lead transformative research in the field of cognitive aging.

Denise Cai, PhD, is an Associate Professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Through the support of this award, Dr. Cai will research memory stability and flexibility across a lifetime.

Christoph Thaiss, PhD, is an Assistant Professor at the University of Pennsylvania. Through the support of this award, Dr. Thaiss will research counteracting age-associated cognitive decline via gut-brain signaling.

Dr. Cai and Dr. Thaiss will each receive $750,000 for an award period of three years. The MBRF Innovator Awards in Cognitive Aging and Memory Loss are supported by a $4.5 million grant from the McKnight Brain Research Foundation and will support six investigators over a period of five years.

Learn more about The McKnight Brain Research Foundation Innovator Awards in Cognitive Aging and Memory Loss here.

Read a related press release on the 2023 awardees here.

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