Executive Director

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Dr. Thomas R. Easterling, Director of the Foundation’s Medical Board said, “The trend for strong submissions is continuing to grow as we have had another stellar year for our Vision Grant program. We have a robust grant review process and I am confident that we have identified promising young talent with novel ideas.”

About the Vision Grant Award Recipients (photos available upon request):

Hilary Gammill is an Acting Assistant Professor at the University of Washington, as well as a Research Associate at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington. She graduated magna cum laude from Amherst College, and earned her medical degree at University of Washington School of Medicine. After completing residency and fellowship training at Magee-Womens Hospital of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, she returned to the University of Washington as an attending physician in Obstetrics & Gynecology. Gammill’s research will evaluate two types of cells critical to the maternal immune response in pregnancy, as the excessive immune response seen in preeclampsia may represent “rejection” of the fetus. Ultimately, problems within these specialized cells may be targets for treatment.

Bhanu Prakash Telugu hails from Visakhapatnam, India. He received his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from Sri Venkateswara Veterinary University, before going on to earn his Ph.D. at University of Missouri in Columbia. He is currently a postdoctoral fellow in the Division of Animal Science at the University of Missouri in Columbia. His past accomplishments include developing an assay for detecting pregnancy-associated glycoproteins in cattle, for which a U.S. patent is pending. His objective for preeclampsia research is to develop a novel human embryonic stem cell-based model to investigate the origin and migratory behavior of specialized placental cells called extravillous trophoblast. These cells modify the maternal blood vessels to ensure uninterrupted blood supply to the growing fetus, a process that breaks down in preeclampsia. The thrust of his research is to investigate the molecular signature and physiological behavior of these cells in order to identify the predisposing factors for the disease.

About the Vision Grant Award Program: According to the World Health Organization, preeclampsia is one of the least funded areas of research. For this reason, the Preeclampsia Foundation provides Vision Grants to fund medical research pertaining to the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. Vision Grants are small awards intended to provide initial funding for novel rather than well-established lines of research.

About Preeclampsia: Preeclampsia, a disorder of pregnancy, is characterized by high blood pressure and protein in the urine; other symptoms often include swelling in the hands and face. Preeclampsia affects the mother’s kidneys, liver and other vital organs and, if undetected or untreated, can lead to seizures (eclampsia), cerebral hemorrhage, failure in vital organs (i.e., kidney and heart) and death. Preeclampsia complicates five to eight percent of all pregnancies and is responsible for 15 percent of all premature births. By conservative estimates, each year this disease is responsible for 76,000 maternal deaths worldwide.