NIH’er Named Finalist for 2021 Trailblazer Prize

The Foundation for the NIH has selected NIAID’s Dr. Ian Myles as one of the finalists for the 4th annual Trailblazer Prize for Clinician-Scientists.

Myles is chief of the epithelial therapeutics unit in NIAID’s Laboratory of Clinical Immunology and Microbiology. He was selected by a jury of distinguished biomedical research leaders for his exploration of the skin condition atopic dermatitis, allergy and microbial dysbiosis—an imbalance of the body’s microbial communities that cause inflammation—leading to the development of the first in-human trial of topical microbiome transplantation using Roseomonas mucosa in treating atopic dermatitis.

The other finalists are Dr. Courtney DiNardo of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Dr. Piro Lito of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Weill Medical College of Cornell University. 

“It is thrilling to watch clinician-scientists, early into their careers, dive wholeheartedly into solving biomedical puzzles such as these,” said FNIH president and executive director Dr. Maria Freire. “By channeling their passion, intelligence and drive, these finalists have made discoveries that moved science many steps along the path toward better therapeutics and healthier populations. All three have already had substantial impact in their areas of expertise and we anticipate even greater work from them in the future.”

The winner will be announced and awarded the Trailblazer Prize and a $10,000 honorarium at the 2021 FNIH Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, Oct. 20. For details, visit https://fnih.org/our-programs/fnih-awards-ceremony. For more information about the prize, visit https://fnih.org/our-programs/fnih-trailblazer-prize-clinician-scientists.