Grant Recipients

SNIS Foundation Grants

2014

We continue to expand the endovascular biopsy project with manuscripts in preparation demonstrating its utility in AVMs and aneurysms. We are now collaborating with a number of other institutions in effort to increase the number of cases available for study as well. The SNIS Foundation grant was instrumental in providing seed funding to get this project off the ground and we appreciate the vision of its members to support such translational efforts.

Daniel Cooke, MD
UCSF
Endovascular biopsy:  Evaluation of technical feasibility of coil-based endothelial cell harvesting and differential endothelial cell gene expression between ruptured and non-ruptured aneurysms within a human population

2015

The SNIS Foundation Grant was essential in getting me started in pursuing funded research. Not only did I learn a ton about translational and basic science research as a result of the program but I also learned the art and science of grant writing. The preliminary data obtained from the SNIS grant is being put to use for future R01 funding. It is because of the experience and skills that I obtained as a result of the SNIS foundation grant that I was able to get my first R01 out of fellowship. I would like to thank all the donors for investing in the future of our field!

Waleed Brinjikji, MD
Mayo Clinic
Effect of mesenchymal stem cell loaded coils on aneurysm healing in a rabbit model

2015

Receiving support from the SNIS Foundation was a valuable boost to my academic life. As a young investigator, this grant allowed me to collect pilot data that helped launch a committed career in cerebrovascular research.

Sunil Sheth, MD
UCLA
Endovascular sampling of human cerebral endothelial cells to determine in vivo inflammatory changes and oxidative stress in acute ischemic stroke

2019

The SNIS Foundation Grant is a perfect opportunity for clinical investigators who have an innovative research question to design an exploratory pilot study which will provide sufficient preliminary data to launch a larger comprehensive study.

Shahram Majidi, MD
Mount Sinai Health System
Vessel wall imaging and aneurysm hemodynamic pre- and post-treatment with flow diverter

2020

Dimitri Laurent, MD
University of Florida
Sequential release of chemokines from coated coils to target aneurysm healing

2020

Evan Luther, MD
University of Miami
Optical coherence tomography to evaluate in-stent endothelial growth following endovascular treatment of cerebral aneurysms

2020

Prad Selvan, MD
University of Southern California
Large animal model of transvenous endovascular neurotechnology

SNIS Foundation/Joe Niekro Foundation Grants

2014

Lissa Peeling, MD
University of Saskatchewan
Assessment of a novel in-vitro approach to evaluate flow dynamics of porcine red blood cells within a side-wall aneurysm model using synchrotron X-ray particle images velocimetry

2015

Funding from the SNIS Foundation has made a huge difference as I start my career as an independent physician scientist. Part of the appeal of our field is its merging of several exciting disciplines, but this can make it difficult to receive grant funding since reviewers often think there would be a better fit “elsewhere.” The SNIS Foundation has helped fix this problem with their grants, and I will be forever grateful to be a recipient. 

Matthew Alexander, MD
UCSF
Multi-endpoint evaluation of a rabbit model of intracranial atherosclerosis

2015

The SNIS Foundation grant provides invaluable support for junior faculty as they start their research career. The grant provides funding for high risk projects in their early stage, and it facilitates cutting edge research into diseases treated by neurointerventional surgeons. Thank you to the SNIS Foundation for their generous support of my own research career!

Jeremy Heit, MD, PhD
Stanford University
Nanoparticle-based treatment of cerebral vasospasm following aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage

2016

The SNIS Foundation Joe Niekro grant gave me the funding necessary to jump start a translational research program, develop pilot data, and apply for a secure long-term grant support. Thank you!

Christopher Kellner, MD
Mount Sinai Health System
The intra-arterial delivery of modified human endothelial progenitor cells to treat cerebral vasospasm through the L-arginine/NO pathway in the human placenta flow model

2016

Cameron McDougall, MD
UT Southwestern
Next generation brain arteriovenous malformation model

2016

The SNIS Foundation grant was critical in allowing me to launch a novel research program early in my career that continues to generate interesting and potentially translatable results. The funds provided our laboratory with the ability to generate early pilot data on the impact of mesenchymal stem cells on aneurysm formation, and laid the foundation for exploring their use in aneurysm treatment. The impact of this grant on our research program, therefore, extended well beyond the initial stages of my career and I am extremely grateful to the SNIS for the funding opportunities they provide for its members.

Alim Mitha, MD
University of Calgary
Intravenous mesenchymal stem cell therapy for aneurysm formation in a rabbit model

2017

The SNIS Foundation’s Joe Niekro Research grant was instrumental in providing seed funding to our neurovascular research group at Northwestern University.  It supported the vision of an excellent research fellow in his exploratory research project to develop a novel, rapid imaging technology, not commonly utilized for brain imaging and early stroke evaluation. The grant funding allowed us to purchase the technology, adapt it for intracranial imaging, build a prototype, and apply for a provisional patent. We are planning to complete our preliminary clinical studies in the next year, and if promising, commercialize the technology via the assistance of an NIH Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grant. We are very grateful to the SNIS foundation for their generous support of neurointerventional research in general and our work in particular, without which high risk, high impact pilot research could not be explored.

Sameer Ansari, MD, PhD
Northwestern University
Diagnosis of acute stroke using thermoencephalography

2017

I am incredibly grateful to the SNIS for the Foundation pilot grant to fund our project on endothelial cell dysfunction and differentiation in cerebral aneurysm progression and healing. These funds provide us with the ability to conduct further experiments to gain additional preliminary data. Ultimately, with a stronger foundation, I was able to submit a successful RO1 grant to the NIH that has provided us with a nearly $3 million dollar grant to assess the impact of endothelial cell dysfunction on cerebral aneurysm pathogenesis. The expected positive impact of this multi-disciplinary research is that by enhancing our understanding of endothelial cell dysfunction, clinicians will have novel medical therapies, imaging modalities, and minimally invasive endovascular devices for the successful treatment of cerebral aneurysms.

Robert Starke, MD, MSc
University of Miami
Endothelial cell dysfunction and differentiation in cerebral aneurysm progression and healing

2017

I believe the SNIS grant serves as a very important research start-up funding opportunity in this field. What is so unique about the SNIS grant is that the reviewers of the grants are those who are actively practicing neuro-interventionalists and are involved in many scientific activities through the SNIS. Nobody understands the scientific significance and eventual clinical value of translational researches related to neuro-intervention better than the SNIS grant reviewers. The well-structured review process and comments from the reviewers help to refine the research plan regardless of being funded or not. 

Satoshi Tateshima, MD
UCLA
New approach to study effect of flow on endothelium of cerebral aneurysms

2019

Nicolas Khattar, MD
University of Louisville School of Medicine
Adaptaquin neuroprotection in in-vitro and in-vivo models of severe subarachnoid hemorrhage in mouse model

2019

The support provided by the SNIS Foundation/Joe Niekro Foundation Research Grant has been tremendously helpful in starting our evaluation of fluid dynamics in arteriovenous malformations.   By providing the funding to get preliminary data, I hope this will be the beginning of a successful research program where we can build on our knowledge gained from this research grant and work towards a predictive model for AVM rupture.   Thank you to the SNIS and Joe Niekro Foundation for your investment in our research and the grant program.   I look forward to updating you on our progress.

Nina Moore, MD, MSE
Cleveland Clinic Foundation
Fluid flow and pressure measurements from a 3D printed arteriovenous malformation phantom for fluid structure interaction modeling of a simple arteriovenous malformation

2019

The SNIS Foundation Joe Niekro Research Grant has been absolutely essential in helping to kick start my research efforts. The proposed research project was one that I had been hoping to conduct for several years, but did not have the start up funding to get it started. The SNIS grant provided me with the necessary support and seed funding to demonstrate proof of concept, and the research project is now moving full steam ahead!

Eric Sussman, MD
Stanford University
Elucidation of stroke pathophysiology in vivo utilizing indocyanine green-angiography, electrocorticography, and advanced neuroimaging