NEW YORK, NY—The Foundation is thrilled to announce the selection of the 2026–2028 class of Senior Fellows in Biomedical Science.
This year’s cohort represents eight exceptional scientists at the vanguard of biomedical discovery. Composed of three women and five men from leading research institutions, these Fellows are pioneering transformative work—from mapping how hormones reorganize brain chemistry to engineering light-activated cell therapies for tissue regeneration.
About the Fellowship Program
Established in 1981, the Charles H. Revson Senior Fellowship in Biomedical Science supports outstanding postgraduate research fellows conducting experimental basic research.
Over the decades, the program has continuously evolved to maximize its impact, expand its reach, and foster a vibrant scientific community. Today, the Fellowship boasts a robust network and key features designed to support cutting-edge science and career-life balance:
- Expanded Reach: The program awards eight annual fellowships across 13 premier tri-state area research institutions.
- Career-Life Support: To support early-career researchers, the Foundation provides a dedicated dependent care travel allowance, allowing fellows to allocate funds toward childcare costs for professional conferences.
- A Vibrant Alumni Network: Fellows join a collaborative community connected through dedicated networking groups and the annual Biomedical Fellows Meeting and Dinner—a landmark hybrid event bringing together current fellows, global program alumni, and partner scholars.
Meet the 2026–2028 Senior Fellows
1. Meenakshi Asokan, PhD, Princeton University
Research Focus: Hormonal Reorganization of Neural Circuits
The Project: Sex steroid hormones like estrogen and testosterone powerfully regulate mood and social drives, but their shifts are heavily linked to anxiety and depressive symptoms during pre-menstrual, post-partum, and peri-menopausal stages. Integrating systems neuroscience and computational models, Dr. Asokan is mapping how hormone-driven changes reorganize cortical computations across the brain to regulate motivation and behavior.
2. Nicolas Gomez Banoy, MD, PhD, Rockefeller University
Research Focus: Genetic Determinants of Metabolic Health
The Project: Dr. Gomez Banoy is investigating the genetic determinants of human brown adipose tissue (BAT) function, specifically focusing on a mitochondrial protein called VWA8. Utilizing data from a massive cohort of over 100,000 individuals, he identified rare gene variants in people with exceptionally high BAT activity and favorable metabolic profiles. His mechanistic studies aim to uncover how targeting VWA8 might regulate thermogenesis and combat metabolic diseases.
3. Yu-Jung Chen, PhD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Research Focus: Overcoming Immunosuppression in Glioblastoma
The Project: Glioblastoma is a lethal brain tumor surrounded by lipid-laden macrophages (TAMs) that actively suppress the body’s immune response. Dr. Chen is testing whether blocking a specific pathway (CD36-dependent myelin uptake) can prevent these harmful macrophages from forming and restore the immune system’s ability to fight the tumor. Additionally, he is developing a macrophage-engineering platform to reprogram bone-marrow-derived cells into a pro-inflammatory, tumor-fighting state.
4. Schira Denagamage, PhD, Columbia University
Research Focus: How Self-Motion Sculpts Visual Perception
The Project: Dr. Denagamage is exploring how an animal’s own movement signals reshape and suppress visual representations across the nervous system. Utilizing population-level neural imaging technologies he pioneered, this project will trace how naturalistic visual objects are mapped across large neural networks when an organism is in motion, providing a fundamentally new view of how sensory input is gated at the systems level.
5. Henry Thomas, PhD, New York University Grossman School of Medicine
Research Focus: Decoding Cell Type Specification
The Project: A central question in biology is how complex organisms guide cells to form specific types in appropriate parts of the body. Dr. Thomas’s research focuses on Homeobox (“HOX”) pioneer transcription factors, which bind to specific gene regions to dictate cell fate despite recognizing nearly identical DNA motifs. Combining live-cell single-molecule imaging with stem-cell-based models, his work explores this longstanding puzzle of gene regulation.
6. Ying Yin, PhD, The Rockefeller University
Research Focus: Structural Mechanics of Touch and Proprioception
The Project: Piezo2 is a specialized, mechanosensitive ion channel that converts gentle touch and internal body positioning into electrical signals. Dr. Yin is utilizing advanced cryo-electron tomography and membrane elasticity theory to capture high-resolution structures of Piezo2 in its lipid bilayers during both its closed (curved) and force-activated/open (flattened) states. This work will illuminate how the channel’s physical architecture is tuned for rapid sensation and how mutations cause disease.
7. Zhe Zhou, PhD, Yale University
Research Focus: Microbiome Interactions and Colorectal Cancer
The Project: Dr. Zhou is investigating the alarming rise of colorectal cancer incidence in young adults. His research centers on EGT, a powerful dietary antioxidant found in beans and mushrooms that protects against the oxidative damage leading to malignancies. Because certain gut bacteria can prematurely degrade EGT and render it useless, Dr. Zhou is using specialized mouse models to explore how the human microbiome interacts with this antioxidant and influences cancer risk.
8. Long Nguyen, PhD, Princeton University
Research Focus: Light-Guided Tissue Regeneration
The Project: Dr. Nguyen is developing a programmable, temporary cell-therapy platform for wound healing based on synthetic, light-activated receptors (SynRTKs). Delivered locally to the skin via mRNA lipid nanoparticles, these receptors can be controlled using patterned blue light to precisely drive pro-migratory and regenerative cellular behaviors. This proof-of-concept represents a brand-new class of non-permanent, non-invasive regenerative therapies.
Please join us in celebrating the 2026–2028 class of Senior Fellows as they embark on these vital research journeys.