Weill Neurohub Clinician & Translational-Scientists

The Clinician-Scientist Awards and Translational Scientist Awards recognize and support outstanding early-career investigators who have shown extraordinary potential for careers in brain disease research. Their work provides a crucial link between fundamental discovery and clinical impact, translating scientific discoveries into advances for patients with brain and nervous system disorders. By providing funding, mentorship, and a collaborative community across UC Berkeley, UCSF, and the University of Washington, the program helps cultivate the next generation of leaders in translational neuroscience.

The 2026 Clinician & Translational-Scientist Awardees

  • Headshot of John Andrews, MD

    John Andrews, MD

    UCSF

    Department of Neurological Surgery

    Research Focus: Studying human brain tissue obtained during neurosurgery to understand how changes in genes and brain cell activity can be used to treat epilepsy and other neurologic disorders.

  • Headshot of Ellen Bradley, MD

    Ellen Bradley, MD

    UCSF

    Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

    Research Focus: Investigating new treatments for early neuropsychiatric features of Parkinson's disease.

  • Headshot of Cathryn Cadwell, MD, PhD

    Cathryn Cadwell, MD, PhD

    UCSF

    Department of Neurological Surgery

    Research Focus: Investigating human brain function at the cell type and local circuit level to understand how circuits form during development and are altered in diseases such as epilepsy.

  • Headshot of Gregory Chinn, MD, PhD

    Gregory Chinn, MD, PhD

    UCSF

    Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Care

    Research Focus: Understanding how drugs alter neural physiology to reveal mechanisms of brain vulnerability and inform strategies for resilience in disease and physiologic stress.

  • Headshot of Francesca Galbiati, MD

    Francesca Galbiati, MD

    UCSF

    Department of Medicine

    Research Focus: Understanding neurobiological and neuroendocrine mechanisms regulating eating behavior and cognitive control in obesity and hyperphagia.

  • Headshot of Ben Grannan, MD

    Ben Grannan, MD

    University of Washington

    Department of Neurological Surgery

    Research Focus: Identifying the laminar origins of surface electrocorticography signals by using ultra-high density recording probes during awake neurosurgical procedures.

  • Headshot of Jessica Jimenez, MD, PhD

    Jessica Jimenez, MD, PhD

    UCSF

    Department of Neurology

    Research Focus: Investigating neural circuit mechanisms that facilitate sleep-dependent memory consolidation after learning and sleep deprivation.

  • Headshot of Britta Lindquist, MD, PhD

    Britta Lindquist, MD, PhD

    UCSF

    Department of Neurology

    Research Focus: Understanding the influence of pulmonary ventilation and kidney function on brain waves involved in migraine, epilepsy, and acute brain injuries from stroke, hemorrhage, and trauma.

  • Headshot of Chimno Nnadi, MD, PhD

    Chimno Nnadi, MD, PhD

    UCSF

    Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

    Research Focus: Leveraging behavioral phenotyping and machine learning to advance neuropsychiatric drug discovery and elucidate mechanisms of neuroactive compounds.

  • Headshot of Alison Setiz, MD

    Alison Setiz, MD

    University of Washington

    Department of Neurology

    Research Focus: Test which plasma proteins from a premenopausal oophorectomy proteomic signature are prospectively associated with incident ischemic stroke and coronary heart disease in three diverse U.S. cohorts

  • Headshot of Sarah Simmons, MD, PhD

    Sarah Simmons, MD, PhD

    University of Washington

    Department of Rehabilitation Medicine

    Research Focus: Using quantitative myelin imaging and wrist-worn fitness trackers to explore the association of physical activity variables and other potentially modifiable lifestyle factors with changes in myelin thickness throughout the central nervous system in adults with progressive multiple sclerosis.

  • Headshot of Anna Sunshine, MD, PhD

    Anna Sunshine, MD, PhD

    University of Washington

    Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

    Research Focus: Identifying de novo mutations in patients with schizophrenia through whole-genome sequencing of proband-parent-parent trios and characterizing the impact of prioritized mutations using iPSC models including neuronal differentiation of patient-derived stem cell lines.