Research We Fund
By connecting basic, translational, and clinical researchers, HA is accelerating hydrocephalus research and working to fulfill our mission.
Bench to Bedside
The Hydrocephalus Association Research Program is focused on advancing promising avenues of hydrocephalus research and building a committed and connected hydrocephalus research community. Through the support of three research networks and our patient-powered registry, HA has created a research ecosystem that improves the lives of those with hydrocephalus now, while identifying and testing new hypotheses and therapies. By connecting basic, translational, and clinical researchers, HA is accelerating hydrocephalus research and working to fulfill our mission.
Meet Our Latest Grantees
Funding high-impact, high-quality basic, and translational research is essential for the identification and testing of new drugs and other therapies that could change how we treat hydrocephalus. That is why, each year, the Hydrocephalus Association runs grant cycles to fund individual researchers conducting innovative and exciting research that will improve our understanding of the condition, identify and test new interventions, and move new discoveries towards clinical use.
To read more about our Past Grantees and Programs click here.
Innovator Award
About the Award
In 2015, HA launched the first-ever Innovator Award for Investigators in Hydrocephalus Therapeutics Research. The goal of this grant is to provide seed funding for bold and innovative research with the potential to transform the field of hydrocephalus through the understanding of disease mechanisms and the development of novel therapies.
Stavros Taraviras, PhD
2020 Innovator Award Recipient TITLE: Professor INSTITUTION: University of Patras GOAL: Dr. Taraviras is working to reprogram scar tissue into functioning ependyma, the cells that line the ventricles. In many…
Read More
Jose Peiro, MD, PhD
2020 Innovator Award Recipient TITLE: Professor, UC Department of Surgery INSTITUTION: University of Cincinnati GOAL: Dr. Peiro is developing a technique to treat congenital hydrocephalus by performing an endoscopic third ventriculostomy…
Read More
Aditya Pandey, MD
2020 Innovator Award Recipient TITLE: Professor, Neurological Surgery INSTITUTION: University of Michigan GOAL: Dr. Pandey aims to test if acetazolamide (Diamox), when put directly into the ventricles, can block the…
Read More
Carolyn A. Harris, PhD
2020 Innovator Award Recipient TITLE: Assistant Professor INSTITUTION: Wayne State University GOAL: Dr. Harris is focused on understanding the differences in how immune cells in the brain react after a…
Read More
Brandon A. Miller, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor, University of Kentucky
This project will determine if antioxidant therapy can reduce brain injury after intraventricular hemorrhage and post-hemorrhagic hydrocephalus (IVH/PHH). IVH/PHH occurs in preterm infants, and leads to oxidative stress and brain injury.
Read More
Bernadette Holdener, PhD
2019 Innovator Award Recipient TITLE: Associate Professor, Stony Brook University GOAL: Understanding how disturbances in the way the brain produces and uses energy are related to the development of hydrocephalus…
Read More
Joel Geerling, MD, PhD
2019 Innovator Award Recipient TITLE: Assistant Professor, University of Iowa GOAL: Developing symptom-specific therapies for NPH patients Project Summary: Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) is a progressive neurological disease characterized…
Read More
Engin Deniz, MD
2019 Innovator Award Recipient TITLE: Assistant Professor, Yale University GOAL: Understanding the role of cilia in post-traumatic hydrocephalus PROJECT SUMMARY: The disruption of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) circulation can cause hydrocephalus,…
Read MoreDiscovery Science Awards
About the Award
Discovery Science Awards provide multiyear support for high quality, innovative, and timely research projects by established investigators. The goals of this grant are to expand the scope of promising research studies, increase a lab’s focus on hydrocephalus, and involve junior investigators in conducting the research through a substantial multiyear commitment. In 2018, the Discovery Science Awards were focused on posthemorrhagic and postinfectious hydrocephalus research.
Yun Yung, PhD
2018 Discovery Science Award Recipient TITLE: Assistant Professor, Scintillon Institute GOAL: Test a new way to deliver drugs to the newborn brain Overview: Dr. Yun Yung received his PhD at…
Read More
David Limbrick, MD, PhD
2018 Discovery Science Award Recipient TITLE: Professor, Washington University in St. Louis GOAL: Test a new drug to prevent the development of posthemorrhagic hydrocephalus by protecting the cells that line…
Read More
Maria Lehtinen, PhD
2018 Discovery Science Award Recipient TITLE: Associate Professor, Boston Children’s Hospital GOAL: Determine how a brain bleed changes choroid plexus function and brain development Overview: Dr. Maria Lehtinen received her…
Read More
R. Reid Townsend, MD, PhD
2018 Discovery Science Award Recipient TITLE: Professor, Washington University GOAL: Determine how the brain responds to infections that cause postinfectious hydrocephalus Overview: Dr. R. Reid Townsend is the Director of…
Read More
Kristopher Kahle, MD, PhD
2018 Discovery Science Award Recipient TITLE: Assistant Professor, Yale University GOAL: Identify and test new drug targets to prevent postinfectious hydrocephalus. Overview: Dr. Kristopher T. Kahle, is an Assistant…
Read MoreResident's Prize in Hydrocephalus
About the Award
Since 1989, the Hydrocephalus Association has been awarding the Resident’s Prize. This prize is awarded each year at the Pediatric Section of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons/Congress of Neurological Surgeons (AANS/CNS) to the most promising hydrocephalus-related research paper presented by a neurosurgical resident who is a member of the section.
Mohammed Alshareef, MD
2020 Resident’s Prize in Hydrocephalus PROJECT TITLE: Complement Activation Leads to Worse Cognitive Outcomes Following Germinal Matrix Hemorrhage in a Chronic Mouse Model Mohammed Alshareef is a 6th year neurological…
Read MoreYoung Investigator Travel Award
About the Award
The National Conference on Hydrocephalus brings renowned clinicians and scientists together with the hydrocephalus patient community. The Conference is an ideal place for young investigators to meet the families affected by hydrocephalus and hopefully strengthen their commitment to a career focused on hydrocephalus, however, few young investigators are able to attend. This award aims to encourage young investigators to attend.
Andrew Scott Emmert, BS
L1cam Mutation Exacerbates Neonatal Hydrocephalus in a CCDC39-Deficient Rat Model Characterized by Impaired Glymphatic CSF Flow
Jeff Horbatiuk
The Flow Limiting Operator: FLO
Eri Iwasawa, MD, PhD
Inflammation and Impaired Neural Differentiation in CCDC39 Rat Model of Neonatal Hydrocephalus
Jason Karimy, MS
A role for inflammation: TLR-4-mediated cerebrospinal fluid hypersecretion in post-hemorrhagic and post-infectious hydrocephalus
Riccardo Serra, MD
Evaluating the effects of CSF proteins on valves and anti-siphoning devices in a benchtop shunt system
Margaret Tish, BS
Neuronal characterization of hydrocephalic symptoms
Joseph “Tyler” Vasas, BS
Glial Scar Formation And Concomitant Glymphatic Impairment In The Hydrocephalic Brain
Vanessa Wall, MA, MS
Social-emotional outcomes in children with hydrocephalus
Kathryn Woods, MS
Microglial Secreted IL-10 Mediates Increase in Neuron Death following S. epidermidis Biofilm Exposure
Kathrin Zimmerman, BA
Psychosocial Distress in Pediatric Hydrocephalus
Improving Patient Care Now
We support two multicenter clinical research networks, the pediatric-focused Hydrocephalus Clinical Research Network (HCRN) and the Adult HCRN (AHCRN). These networks of highly skilled clinician-scientists are changing how hydrocephalus clinical research is conducted and producing high quality, high impact studies at an unprecedented pace.
Bringing the Patient Voice to Research
The HA Patient-Powered Interactive Engagement Registry (HAPPIER) is an online database that was developed by HA and created to bring the patient perspective to hydrocephalus research. HAPPIER currently collects information on the treatment and symptoms, health, and quality of life of people living with hydrocephalus.
Communication and Collaboration Among Hydrocephalus Casic and Translational Researchers
The Hydrocephalus Association Network for Discovery Science (HANDS) is a platform for both communication and collaboration among hydrocephalus basic and translational researchers with a focus on mentorship, innovation, and shared infrastructure. Through HANDS we award research grants to individual investigators conducting innovative research and also hold research conferences and workshops that are designed to promote collaboration and identify promising new opportunities.