Scholars

Twenty scientists have been selected for OHC’s 2024 and 2025 Rare Disease Scholar Award to advance academic discoveries into clinical practice for rare diseases.

2025 OHC Rare Disease Scholars

Rachel Bailey, PhD – University of Texas 

Gene Therapy to Cure an Ultra-Rare, Devastating Neurodevelopmental Metabolic Disorder of the SLC13A5 Citrate Transporter

Esther Becker, PhD – University of Oxford

New Small Molecules to Treat Spinocerebellar Ataxia

Joseph Buxbaum, PhD – Icahn School of Medicine

Treatment of the Autism-Spectrum Neurodevelopmental ADNP Syndrome with Small Molecule Drugs

Matthew Gentry, PhD – University of Florida

Advanced Brain Penetrant Enzyme Therapy to Treat Neurological Glycogen Storage Diseases

Albert La Spada, MD, PhD – University of California

Silencer RNA Therapy to Treat Rare, Juvenile-onset ALS Neuromuscular Disease, ALS4

Michael Lin, MD, PhD – Stanford University

A Genetically Programmed Therapeutic for Sensing and Killing Rare Brain Cancers

Pengfei Liu, PhD – Baylor College of Medicine 

Precision Nucleic Acid Therapeutics for the Ultra-Rare CAMK2B Neurodevelopmental Disorder

David Segal, PhD – University of California

Treatment of the Autism-Spectrum Neurodevelopmental ADNP Syndrome with Nucleic Acid Drugs

Anthony Shum, MD – University of California

Gene Therapy for the Progressive, Debilitating, Multisystem COPA Syndrome

Mingshan Xue, PhD – Baylor College of Medicine

Gene Therapy for the Catastrophic CASK-Related Neurodevelopmental Disorder