The David and Deborah Winston Fellowship in Diabetes Research was funded in 2012 to support graduate students conducting diabetes and diabetes-related research in the labs of Diabetes Research Center (DRC) members.
The fellowship is now awarded annually from the Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism & Lipid Research to outstanding graduate students who show great promise in diabetes research. It provides monetary support for the recipient(s) research and research-related activities.
2024 Winston Fellowship Awardees
Marlie Maestas
Marlie Maestas is a 5th-year Developmental, Regenerative, Stem Cell Biology PhD student in Jeffrey R. Millman’s lab. Her research focuses on identifying transcriptional regulators of diabetic-associated stressors in primary human islets. She utilizes single-cell RNA sequencing to identify cell-type-specific responses to endoplasmic reticulum and inflammatory stress. Additionally, she is using a whole-genome CRISPR screen to improve the survival of stem cell-derived islets after transplantation into a diabetic mouse model. Throughout her graduate training, she has presented at multiple local and international conferences, is a member of the Early Career Executive Council, was a part of the Lucille P. Markey Special Emphasis Pathway in Human Pathobiology, and recently published her first, first author research and review articles.
Ilana Olin
Ilana Olin is an MD/PhD student in the Immunology program, working in the laboratory of Peggy Kendall, MD in the Division of Allergy & Immunology. Ilana’s doctoral research focuses on the roles of B cells and the microbiota in type 1 diabetes (T1D) pathogenesis. Specifically, she studies how Akkermansia muciniphila, a commensal microbe, can contribute to protection against T1D. Throughout her graduate training, she has presented her work locally and internationally through poster presentations at meetings such as the American Association of Immunologists Annual Meeting and the Immunology of Diabetes Society Congress.
Previous Awardees
2023
Mandy Chan
Schilling Lab, led by Joel Shilling MD, PhD
Jeongmin Lee
Piston Lab, led by David W. Piston, PhD
2022
Chang Gui
Meyer Muscle Lab, led by Gretchen Meyer, PhD
2021
Yiming Zhang
DeBosch Lab, led by Brian DeBosch
2020
Punn Augsornworawat
Millman Lab, led by Jeffrey Millman
2018
Arthur Sletten
Schaffer Lab, led by Jean Schaffer
2017/2016
Trent Evans
Razani Lab, led by Babak Razani
2015
Jonathan Lin
Apte Lab, led by Rajendra Apte
2014/2013
Rebecca Schugar
Crawford Lab, led by Peter Crawford