BBRF’s annual Klerman & Freedman Prizes recognize exceptional clinical and basic research in mental illness conducted by BBRF Young Investigator grantees. The Young Investigator Grant program is the hallmark program of the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation, enabling aspiring young scientists with innovative ideas to garner pilot data and generate “proof of concept” for their work. These two prizes recognize innovative thinking and remarkable talent across the field of neuropsychiatry. The prizewinners are selected by committees of the Foundation’s distinguished Scientific Council.
Klerman Prize for Exceptional Clinical Research
The Klerman Prize, established in 1994 by Myrna M. Weissman, Ph.D., in memory of her late husband, Gerald L. Klerman, M.D., honors exceptional clinical research by a Young Investigator Grantee.
2026 Klerman Prizewinner:
Joline M. Fan, M.D., M.S.
University of California, San Francisco
Honorable Mentions:
- Erica Berlin Baller, M.D., M.S. - University of Pennsylvania
- Nili Solomonov, Ph.D. - Weill Cornell Medicine
Selection Committee
Chair:
- Carolyn Rodriguez, M.D., Ph.D. - Stanford University
Co-Chair:
- Anissa Abi-Dargham, M.D. - The Research Foundation for the State University of New York, Stony Brook
Members:
- Carmen Andreescu, M.D. - University of Pittsburgh
- Zafiris J. Daskalakis, M.D., Ph.D. - University of California, San Diego
- Cecile D. Ladouceur, Ph.D. - University of Pittsburgh
- Diego Pizzagalli, Ph.D. - University of California, Irvine
- David Silbersweig, M.D. - Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard University
Freedman Prize for Exceptional Basic Research
The Freedman Prize honors the late Daniel X. Freedman, M.D., a pioneer in biological psychiatry and psychopharmacology and a founding member of the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation Scientific Council. It is awarded to a Young Investigator Grantee for exceptional basic studies.
2026 Freedman Prizewinner:
Vineet Augustine, Ph.D.
University of California, San Diego
Honorable Mentions:
- Xiaoting Wu, Ph.D. - Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
- Wendy Xin, Ph.D. - University Health Network / University of Toronto
Selection Committee
Chair:
- Marina Picciotto, Ph.D. - Yale University
Co-Chair:
- Cecilia Flores, Ph.D. - McGill University
Members:
- Ted Abel, Ph.D. - Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa
- Mazen Kheirbek, Ph.D. - University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)
- Keri Martinowich, Ph.D. - Lieber Institute for Brain Development, Johns Hopkins University
- Colleen McClung, Ph.D. - University of Pittsburgh
- Bita Moghaddam, Ph.D. - Oregon Health and Science University
