The Vilcek Foundation is proud to announce the recipients of the 2025 Vilcek Foundation Prizes in Biomedical Science. Totaling $250,000 in awards, the prizes recognize immigrant scientists who have made important research discoveries, and who are using innovative approaches to solve the most pressing questions in biomedical science and medicine. 

The awards not only honor outstanding scientific achievement, they highlight the positive impact immigration and diversity have on the advancement of science. In 2025 the foundation awards four prizes in biomedical science: one Vilcek Prize and three Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise. 

The 2025 Vilcek Prizes in Biomedical Science are awarded to:

• Marianne Bronner (b. Hungary)
• Elham Azizi (b. Iran)
• Guosong Hong (b. China)
• Maayan Levy (b. Israel)

The Vilcek Prize in Biomedical Science

The Vilcek Prize recognizes a biomedical research scientist whose career work represents a significant contribution to their field and to scientific research and medicine more broadly. Awarded annually since 2006, the Vilcek Prize is a tribute to Vilcek Foundation Cofounder, Chairman, and CEO Jan Vilcek’s legacy as an immigrant scientist. The recipient of the Vilcek Prize receives a cash award of $100,000 and a commemorative trophy. The foundation is delighted to award the 2025 Vilcek Prize in Biomedical Science to Marianne Bronner.

Marianne Bronner

Marianne Bronner is a developmental biologist at Caltech, where she is the Edward B. Lewis Professor of Biology, and the director of the Beckman Institute. She receives the Vilcek Prize in Biomedical Science for her career research on neural crest stem cells and their role in the development of the peripheral nervous system, heart, and craniofacial skeleton in vertebrate organisms. Born in Hungary, Bronner emigrated to the United States with her family as a young child. She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and an advocate for gender equity in science.

The Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise

The Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise are awarded to early- and mid-career biomedical scientists and researchers whose work has had a significant impact on their field of study. Using interdisciplinary approaches, these scientists are advancing biomedical research in ways that have profound implications on our ability to understand, diagnose, and treat disease. Creative Promise Prizewinners each receive a commemorative trophy and an unrestricted cash award of $50,000. The 2025 Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise in Biomedical Science are awarded to Elham Azizi, Guosong Hong, and Maayan Levy.  

Elham Azizi

Elham Azizi receives the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Biomedical Science for her research engaging machine learning, statistics, genomics, and bioengineering to derive principles of cancer initiation, progression, and response to immunotherapies in cancer patients. Born in Iran, Azizi is an alumna of Sharif University of Technology and of Boston University, where she earned her MS and PhD. She is an associate professor of cancer data research and biomedical engineering at Columbia University. 

Guosong Hong

Guosong Hong receives the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Biomedical Science for the development of novel neuroengineering tools combining materials science and biology that engage ultrasound, light, and radio-frequency-based interfaces to study the brain. Born in China, Hong is an alumnus of Peking University; he earned his PhD in Chemistry from Stanford University, where he is now an assistant professor of materials science and engineering. 

Maayan Levy

Maayan Levy receives the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Biomedical Science for her immunological research studying the potential therapeutic applications of metabolites as vehicles and targets to prevent and treat diseases, including cancer. Born in Israel, Levy earned her BSc at Tel Aviv University and holds a PhD from the Weizmann Institute of Science. After graduate school, Levy became an assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania; she recently joined the Stanford University School of Medicine.