The much anticipated 2020 DREAM Innovation Grant (DIG) recipients were announced at Duke Anesthesiology’s 31st Annual ASA Alumni Event at Lafayette's Music Room in Orlando on Saturday, October 19th. Two of the recipients, Drs. Andrey Bortsov and Katherine Martucci, are faculty in the department’s Center for Translational Pain Medicine.
Congratulations to the 2020 DIG winners:
Andrey V. Bortsov, MD, PhD
"Focused Optimization of Novel Nav1.7 Inhibitors"
Katherine Martucci, PhD
“A Human Neuroimaging Investigation of the Imbalanced Spinal Cord in Fibromyalgia"
Mary Yurashevich, MD, MPH
“The Role of Cerebrospinal and Serum Inflammatory Biomarkers in Predicting Perinatal Depression and Persistent Pain After Cesarean Delivery”
DIGs support innovative high-risk and potentially high-reward investigations to accelerate anesthesia and pain management research. Each year, Duke Anesthesiology junior and senior faculty members compete for a DIG by submitting their most innovative research ideas to the DIG Application Review Committee. Dr. William Maixner, vice chair for research and co-director of the Center for Translational Pain Medicine, announces the DIG recipients at the department’s annual ASA Alumni Event.
Each DIG recipient can receive up to $30,000 in seed money, which supports their pilot study for one year and ultimately helps them apply for and obtain extramural funding. These grants are funded through a combination of private donors, private companies, alumni, faculty, and executive board members. To date, $842,378 has been funded by DIGs, which has led to nearly $15 million in extramural funding to further investigate the role of Alzheimer’s pathways, therapies to improve stroke outcomes, ways to prevent cognitive decline after surgery, blood cell rejuvenation, treatments for obstructive sleep apnea during pregnancy, and more. Click here to view the previous DIG recipients and learn more about their projects.
DIGs are part of the Duke DREAM Campaign, which launched in 2007 to support Duke Anesthesiology’s research programs and initiatives. These grants create an avenue for healthy competition among faculty, inspire ingenuity, promote the careers of young physician investigators, enhance donor communication, and further the department’s academic mission. DIGs help to bridge the gap between training and progression to independent investigator status. Please consider making an online gift to the Duke DREAM Campaign to support our department’s research initiatives focused on improving patient care.