Category: Awards

LaTasha Crawford, VMD, PhD, DACVP, Awarded R01 to Investigate Neural Drivers of Bladder Function and Urologic Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome

LaTasha Crawford, VMD, PhD, DACVP, prior CAIRIBU K12 Scholar and recipient of a 2023 CAIRIBU Collaboration Award, was recently awarded an R01 grant by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for her project titled, “Role of A-fiber mechanosensitive neurons in bladder function and urologic disease phenotypes.” Dr. Crawford’s work will focus on urologic chronic pelvic …

Urobiome Summer Meeting Award Recipients

The 2026 CAIRIBU Urobiome Research Interest Group Summer Meeting provided opportunities for trainees to showcase their projects. Trainees who presented the best abstracts, lightning talk, and posters were recognized for demonstrating exceptional scientific communication.

Urobiome RIG Summer Meeting Trainee Travel Awards

The CAIRIBU Urobiome Research Interest Group Summer Meeting will convene in Madison, WI on July 30-31. This in-person meeting will bring together investigators and trainees from within the CAIRIBU Urobiome Research Interest Group (U-RIG) community to share research, nurture collaboration, and innovate solutions to the major challenges faced within the nascent field. Highlights include a keynote lecture by …

Announcing Additional 2026 Collaboration Award Recipients

CAIRIBU Collaboration Awards support short-term, novel, high-risk, non-malignant urologic research. The April application deadline saw a record number of applications. Based on reviewers’ comments and NIDDK Program Officers’ review, the CAIRIBU Interactions Core was able to offer three additional awards this year. Each award provides up to $120,000 total costs for one year. The three …

2026 Collaboration Award Recipients

The CAIRIBU Collaboration Award supports short-term, novel, high-risk, non- malignant urologic research. The April application deadline saw a record number of applications. Based on reviewers’ comments and NIDDK Program Officers’ review, 3 awards were offered. Each award provides up to $120,000 total costs for one year. The 2026 recipients are: 1) Nicole Gilbert, PhD – …

CAIRIBU Travel Awards for 11th Annual Duke Multidisciplinary Benign Urology Research Symposium

The Duke K12 Urologic Research Career Development Program hosted its 11th Annual Multidisciplinary Benign Urology Research Symposium on April 17th, 2026. Under the leadership of Drs. Cindy Amundsen, Friederike Jayes, and Rebecca Kameny, the Duke KURe program recruits talented clinical, translational and basic science researchers from diverse disciplines who are interested in building an independent …

J. Quentin Clemens AUA Victor A. Politano Award

J. Quentin Clemens, MD was recently awarded the American Urological Association's Victor A. Politano Award for outstanding leadership and groundbreaking research in the fields of urinary incontinence and interstitial cystitis. Congratulations Dr. Clemens.

CAIRIBU 2025 Best Poster Winners

The CAIRIBU 2025 meeting, held December 3rd-5th in Madison, WI, was a huge success! The meeting featured a trainee and early-stage investigator pre-meeting, six scientific sessions, various breakout sessions, and two poster sessions. All poster presenters were scored on the quality of their posters and their presentation skills. See the top-rated posters in twelve categories that were awarded the title of Best Poster.

Alexandra Polasko, PhD Receives 2025 RISE Award

Alexandra Polasko, PhD, received a 2025 Recognizing Individuals for Support and Empowerment (RISE) Award. These awards celebrate faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, and residents who have exemplified exceptional mentorship for visiting medical students from Historically Black Medical Colleges (HBMCs).

CAIRIBU Best Abstracts Announced

All 98 abstracts submitted to the 2025 CAIRIBU Annual Meeting were reviewed and scored by leaders in the CAIRIBU community. The top 3 abstracts were submitted by: (1) Ashika Goel, graduate student, Michigan State University; (2) Ananya Pinnamaneni, undergraduate student, Duke University; and (3) Hannah Anderson, graduate student, Medical College of Wisconsin