Feinberg
Northwestern Medicine | Northwestern University | Faculty Profiles

News Center

  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
    • Podcast
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Menu
  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
    • Podcast
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Home » Wong Honored with NIH New Innovator Award
Campus News

Wong Honored with NIH New Innovator Award

By Melissa RohmanOct 5, 2021
Share
Facebook Twitter Email
Yvette Wong, PhD, assistant professor in the Ken and Ruth Davee Department of Neurology’s Division of Movement Disorders, has received the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award, which supports early-career investigators conducting unconventional and innovative research projects in the biomedical, behavioral or social sciences.

Yvette Wong, PhD, assistant professor in the Ken and Ruth Davee Department of Neurology’s Division of Movement Disorders, has received the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director’s New Innovator Award. The award supports early-career investigators conducting unconventional and innovative research projects in the biomedical, behavioral or social sciences.

Wong’s research aims to identify new cellular pathways using cutting-edge microscopy techniques to determine which pathways are involved in the etiology and progression of neurodegeneration in diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, ALS and Alzheimer’s disease.

“I am very honored to receive this award, which will fund really exciting and innovative research using super-resolution microscopy to investigate the dynamics of cellular organelles in real time, and to further understand how these dynamics might contribute to multiple human diseases,” Wong said. “I would like to thank all my past research advisors and mentors for their support and encouragement throughout my research career, as well as my previous and current mentees and colleagues who have helped make science even more fun, enjoyable and novel.”

The NIH Director’s New Innovator Award, established in 2007, supports early-career investigators who propose high-risk or high-impact research. The award will support Wong’s laboratory with studying the cellular mechanisms and events that occur inside organelles at nanoscale levels, to determine how these events contribute to cellular and neuronal homeostasis and disease. Her lab also investigates how defects in mitochondria-lysosome contact sites drive the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases.

“There are many events occurring inside cells and neurons that we still do not know about, so getting to be the first to visualize these new events is really exciting. We hope that the fundamental basic biological discoveries from our lab can help advance biomedical research at the intersection of multiple fields including neuroscience, cell biology and neurodegeneration,” Wong said.

The NIH Director’s New Innovator Award is supported by the NIH Common Fund’s High-Risk, High-Reward program, which inspires novel biomedical research that aligns with the NIH’s mission while significantly impacting and accelerating the field.

“Dr. Wong is a talented young scientist, and this award is a testament to her creativity and innovative spirit that will serve her well throughout her career. I am especially proud of Dr. Wong because she trained in our lab, and thrilled that she has had such a great start as independent faculty,” said Dimitri Krainc, MD, the Aaron Montgomery Ward Professor and chair of the Department of Neurology.

Awards Faculty Neurology
Share. Facebook Twitter Email

Related Posts

Distinguished Implementation Scientist to Lead Medical Social Sciences

Jun 14, 2022

Exploring Ketamine’s Antidepressant Mechanisms

Jun 13, 2022

Northwestern Faculty Elected to Society for Clinical Trials Board

Jun 8, 2022

Comments are closed.

Latest News

Physician Assistant Students Embrace ‘Shades of Purple’

Jul 1, 2022

Dissolving Implantable Device Relieves Pain Without Drugs

Jun 30, 2022

Fathers’ Presence During Childhood Predicts Adult Testosterone Levels

Jun 29, 2022

Epigenetic Biomarkers Predict CVD Risk

Jun 28, 2022

Student Spearheads Ukraine Aid Efforts

Jun 27, 2022
  • News Center Home
  • Categories
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
  • News Archives
  • About Us
Flickr Photos
20220617_NM_0434
20220617_NM_0858
20220617_NM_0643
20220617_NM_0835
20220617_NM_0544
20220617_NM_0450
20220617_NM_0790
20220617_NM_0811
20220617_NM_0851
20220617_NM_0696
20220617_NM_0779
20220617_NM_0838

Northwestern University logo

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

RSS Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Flickr YouTube Instagram
Copyright © 2022 Northwestern University
  • Contact Northwestern University
  • Disclaimer
  • Campus Emergency Information
  • Policy Statements

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.