The School of Medicine Announces 2026 Robert & Sylvia Mapel Research Innovation Awardees

Krzysztof Palczewski, PhD, professor in the Department of Physiology & Biophysics, and Eleonora Risaliti, a graduate student researcher in the same department, have been named this year's Robert & Sylvia Mapel Research Innovation awardees. Their project is titled  “Prime Editing VEGF-A: A Durable Genomic Therapy for Neovascular AMD.”

Palczewski is also the Irving H. Leopold Chair and Donald Bren & Distinguished Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences, as well as the director of the UC Irvine Brunson Center for Translational Vision Research. 

This funding opportunity supports groundbreaking research by a PhD mentor and a PhD student team in biomedical and translational sciences. Research that seeks to establish new paradigms, develop innovative new technology and/or methodology, remove roadblocks that restrict progress in a field, or answer intractable problems, is given priority. This program is intended to develop research in any biomedical area that requires preliminary data necessary to compete for extramural funding, particularly NIH funding.

Risaliti received the award on May 15 on behalf of the team during Grad Day festivities. 

 Risaliti holds the Robert & Sylvia Mapel Research Innovation Awardee certificate in the lab.