The talented and dedicated researchers working at the Mass General Research Institute are pushing the boundaries of science and medicine every day. In this Research Awards and Honors series, we highlight some of the individuals who have recently received awards or honors for their research achievements:

Milica Margeta, MD, PhD

Physician Scientist, Department of Ophthalmology,
Massachusetts General Hospital/Mass Eye and Ear
Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Margeta has been invited to join the Glaucoma Research Foundation’s Catalyst for a Cure Initiative.

This flagship research program selects four researchers from leading institutions to form a consortium dedicated to eradicating glaucoma.

Dr. Margeta and her colleagues will partner for three years to focus on preventing and curing neurodegeneration.

“I am honored to be selected to be a part of this amazing team doing cutting-edge work in neurodegeneration. It will open up many novel avenues of research.

My primary clinical and research focus is glaucoma, but as a part of this consortium I will also be working on other neurodegenerative diseases. Everyone on the team is very excited about where this work may lead.

Discovering common pathways across these disorders will greatly advance our understanding of underlying disease mechanisms and may create opportunities for novel treatments that could be life-changing for patients.”

– Milica Margeta, MD, PhD

Heidi Rehm, PhD

Chief Genomics Officer, Center for Genomic Medicine/Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital
Professor of Pathology, Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Rehm received the 2022 Curt Stern Award from the American Society of Human Genetics.

This award recognizes genetics and genomics researchers who have made significant scientific contributions during the past decade.

“The Curt Stern Award recognizes remarkable scientific achievements in human genetics over the last 10 years and as such, it means a lot to me that my peers value my contributions to our field of work.

And most importantly, this work is directly contributing to diagnoses and improved care of patients with rare disease which is incredibly rewarding.

The recognition is important in demonstrating my ability to follow through on projects which will help sustain and expand my funding and research.

My work involves discovering the causes of rare disease and building resources to support clinical genomic analysis and rare disease diagnosis. Enabling patients to get access to an accurate diagnosis can help improve their outcomes and quality of life.”

– Heidi Rehm, PhD

Michael Honigberg, MD, MPP

Attending physician and researcher in the MGH Cardiology Division, Instructor in Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Honigberg received a Research Goes Red grant from the American Heart Association for his study “Health-related social needs and the risk of hypertension in young adult and early midlife women: The impact of pregnancy.”

This funding is awarded to researchers and their teams to better understand the impact around the social determinants of health, social risk factors and health-related social needs on women’s hypertension in under-resourced populations.

“As an early-career investigator, I’m honored and grateful that the AHA chose to support our project. I’m very excited to be able to strengthen our network of multi-disciplinary researchers across Mass General Brigham working to advance women’s health.

As a field, we have historically under-studied the role of social factors in health and health outcomes, especially in young adults and in women.

rCandidly, social determinants of health fall outside my traditional area of investigation as well. So this grant represented the opportunity to incorporate an additional important area of inquiry.

With the data we are collecting for this study, we will have the chance to integrate the “traditionally medical” with the “social” toward new insights into women’s health.”

– Michael Honigberg, MD, MPP

Heidi Jacobs, PhD

Assistant Investigator, Gordon Center for Medical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital
Assistant Professor of Radiology, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Jacobs received a 2022 de Leon Prize in Neuroimaging at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in the junior scientist category, for the paper In vivo and neuropathology data support locus coeruleus integrity as indicator of Alzheimer’s disease pathology and cognitive decline, published in Science Translational Medicine.

These prizes recognize scientists who publish the best papers in the field of neuroimaging of neurodegenerative processes each year.

“This award represents recognition by the broader imaging field in Alzheimer’s disease for all scientists focused on the importance of the isodendritic core nuclei.

My lab pioneers the visualization, evaluation and application of imaging these nuclei in vivo with the goal to detect Alzheimer’s disease very early, before the first symptoms emerge.

There are currently approximately six million people in the US with Alzheimer’s disease and every three seconds another person receives this diagnosis.

It is disheartening to see how Alzheimer’s disease is robbing valuable memories from patients. These memories are key to who we are as a person and to our interactions with others.

Having witnessed this disease in my grandmother, I want to find those earliest indicators of the disease, so that we can prevent or delay progression of this disease, provide more quality of life to everyone.”

– Heidi Jacobs, PhD

Rakesh K. Jain, PhD

Director, Edwin L. Steele Laboratory for Tumor Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital

A. Werk Cook Professor of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Jain received the 2022 Szent-Györgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research from the National Foundation for Cancer Research.

He was honored for his pioneering research and breakthrough discoveries on overcoming barriers posed by the tumor microenvironment, which led to the improved delivery and efficacy of anti-cancer medicines.

“I am enormously honored and pleased to be selected by the committee for the coveted Szent-Györgyi Prize. Every scientist’s dream is that his or her findings will someday translate from bench to bedside. I have been very fortunate to see this happen in my career multiple times.

Genomic medicine and immunotherapy have transformed the treatment of cancer, but less than 15% of cancer patients benefit from the currently approved drugs. Our overarching hypothesis is that the abnormal tumor microenvironment confers resistance to all these therapies. Therefore, our goal is develop novel strategies to “normalize” the tumor microenvironment and translate these strategies from bench to bedside.”

– Rakesh K. Jain, PhD

Christiane Wrann, PhD, DVM

Assistant Investigator, Cardiovascular Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Wrann received the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF)-Harrington Scholar Award.

This award provides funding and project support by a team of pharmaceutical industry experts through a collaboration with the ADDF and Harrington Discovery Institute.

The ADDF-Harrington Scholar Program is dedicated to advancing academic discoveries into medicines for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

“I feel very honored to be chosen and very delighted that we secured this crucial support to advance our project. This award provides funding and project support by a team of pharmaceutical industry experts through a collaboration with the ADDF and Harrington Discovery Institute.

Alzheimer’s disease is a devastating illness. I strongly believe that our innovative approach has to the potential to make a difference.”

– Christiane Wrann, PhD, DVM

About the Mass General Research Institute
Research at Massachusetts General Hospital is interwoven through more than 30 different departments, centers and institutes. Our research includes fundamental, lab-based science; clinical trials to test new drugs, devices and diagnostic tools; and community and population-based research to improve health outcomes across populations and eliminate disparities in care.
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