AABB Foundation Congratulates Recipients of 2025 Grants

The AABB Foundation congratulates the recipients of the 2025 Process Development Grants and the Early-Career Scientific Research Grants. This year, seven recipients were awarded grant funding to advance a range of research initiatives.

“We are proud to support an exceptional group of grant recipients this year as they lead efforts to drive innovation in blood and biotherapies,” said AABB Foundation Richard Schäfer, MD, FRSB. “These grants are made possible thanks to the generous support of individuals and institutional partners, and we are deeply grateful for their continued dedication to the progress of our field to benefit patients and donors.”

The 2025 grants will fund projects in the following areas: 

Early Career Scientific Research Grants:

• “Mechanistic Analysis of Anti-D-Induced Trogocytosis in Fetal Red Blood Cells: Roles of Fc Receptors and IgG Subclasses” (Yoelys Cruz-Leal, PhD, Canadian Blood Services).
• “Efficacy of Preoperative Intravenous Iron Supplementation in Adolescents Undergoing Scoliosis Surgery” (Lisa Eisler, MD, Columbia University Irving Medical Center).
• “Investigating Platelet Immune Mechanisms in Sickle Cell Disease” (Sean Gu, MD, PhD, Yale School of Medicine).
• “Targeting CCR2 for improved hematopoietic stem cell mobilization” (Stephanie Hurwitz, MD, PhD, Indiana University School of Medicine).
• “Improving platelet transfusions with RNA innovation” (Christopher Thom, MD, PhD, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia).
  

Process Development Grants:

• “Enhance the nation’s abilities in disaster preparedness, planning and decision-making through the expansion of a comprehensive data warehouse for the national blood supply and its offerings” (Katherine Risvold, Circulate).
• “Novel cord blood-derived immunotherapy for solid tumors” (Beth Shaz, MD, MBA, Duke University School of Medicine).
  

The goal of the Process Development Grant is to enhance operational efficiency through the development, implementation, and outcomes analysis of innovative processes, techniques or technologies. The Early-Career Scientific Research Grant funds investigator-initiated, original research in all aspects of transfusion medicine and biotherapies.

The institutions recognized among AABB Foundation’s funding partners include the American Red Cross, Blood Centers of America, Canadian Blood Services, Coastal Blood Foundation, Fresenius Kabi, New York Blood Center, QuidelOrtho, Roche, Santa Barbara Foundation (Tri-Counties Blood Bank Fund), Terumo Blood & Cell Technologies, Topeka Community Foundation (Kansas Blood Service Fund) and Vitalant. 

AABB Now Accepting 2026 Grant Applications

Additionally, the application period for the 2026 cycle of the Early-Career Scientific Research Grants Program opens today. Information about the eligibility criteria and application process is available on the Early-Career Scientific Research Grants Program web page.  

To date, the AABB Foundation has awarded more than $12 million in grants to fund the research work of more than 200 scientists, many of whom have gone on to become expert leaders in the blood and biotherapies field. Additional information about the AABB Foundation is available online.