image: Marianna Sadagurski, PhD, will receive the 2026 Vincent Cristofalo Rising Star Award in Aging Research from the American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR).
Credit: Photo courtesy of Wayne State University
New York, NY — The American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR), is pleased to announce the 2026 recipients of three of its annual Scientific Awards of Distinction: Nir Barzilai, MD, will receive the George M. Martin Lifetime Achievement in Mentoring Award; Richard J. Hodes, MD, will receive the Irving S. Wright Award of Distinction; and Marianna Sadagurski, PhD, will receivethe Vincent Cristofalo Rising Star Award in Aging Research.
The George M. Martin Lifetime Achievement in Mentoring Award is named in honor of George M. Martin, MD (1927-2022), a pioneer in the field of aging research and AFAR’s Scientific Director for more than a decade, who devoted his long, distinguished career to growing the field of aging research while fostering the careers of junior colleagues. It carries a cash prize of $5,000.
This year’s recipient, Nir Barzilai, MD, is the Ingeborg and Ira Leon Rennert Chair of Aging Research, professor in the Departments of Medicine and Genetics, as well as Director of the Institute for Geroscience and the Batia and Idan Ofer program for Validation of Interventions Targeting Aging and Longevity at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. There, he is also the leader of the Course on Biology of Aging, and holds an National Institute on Aging (NIA) training grant in the Biology of Aging. Through his leadership roles and research initiatives for more than three decades, he has mentored or co-mentored hundreds of predoctoral, postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty, many of whom have gone onto receive coveted grants and awards, while rising in leadership positions across the academic, nonprofit, and private sectors. Dr. Barzilai’s dedication to supporting the next generation of geroscientists is further evident in his role as President of the Academy for Health & Lifespan Research, where he has secured support for the Biology of Aging Course for Postdoctoral Fellows at the Marine Biology Laboratory, guided the TIME initiative in aging for pre-graduates, and launched the Viviana Goren Khazzam Communications Fellowship. One of the field’s most reputable and recognized experts, his specialty areas include the genetics of exceptional longevity, gerotherapeutics, and the metabolism of aging. He has published over 380 research articles as well as authored the best-selling book, Age Later: Health Span, Life Span, and the New Science of Longevity. Learn more about Dr. Barzilai’s accomplishments and research here.
The Irving S. Wright Award of Distinction is named in honor of AFAR’s founder, Irving S. Wright, MD (1901-1997) and recognizes exceptional contributions to basic or clinical research in the field of aging. Established in 1982, the award recognized with a framed citation.
This year’s recipient, Richard J. Hodes, MD, is the Director of the National Institute on Aging (NIA) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Hodes, a leading researcher in the field of immunology, has devoted his tenure at NIA to the development of a strong, varied, and balanced research program, focusing on the genetics and biology of aging, age-related cognitive change, basic and clinical studies aimed at reducing disease, and investigations of the behavioral and social aspects of aging. Under his visionary leadership, this has led to new and innovative ways to conduct research, share data, and translate findings into practice. Dr. Hodes also directs the federal effort to find effective ways to treat and prevent Alzheimer's disease and to improve care for those living with dementia. Cutting-edge research conducted and supported by NIA, often in collaboration across institutes at NIH, has helped to revolutionize the way we think about Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Studies in genetics, basic mechanisms, imaging, and biomarkers have spurred the development of potential therapies aimed at a variety of targets and the testing of interventions at the earliest signs of disease.
He is a diplomate of the American Board of Internal Medicine; a member of The Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives; a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science; and a member of the National Academy of Medicine at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Learn more here.
AFAR’s Vincent Cristofalo Rising Star Award in Aging Research is named in honor of the late Dr. Cristofalo (1993-2006), who dedicated his career to aging research and encouraged young scientists to investigate important issues in the biology of aging. Established in 2008, the award recognizes a research scientist in an early or middle phase of his/her career who has already made major discoveries in the fundamental biology of aging and whose work is deemed likely to be highly influential for decades to come. The award is a framed citation and carries a cash prize of $5,000.
2026 Cristofalo Award recipient, Marianna Sadagurski, PhD, is an Associate Professor, Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Department of Biological Sciences, IBio (Integrative Biosciences Center) at Wayne State University. Dr. Sadagurski's research program focuses on the hypothalamic regulation of metabolism in states of environmental stress, obesity, and aging, investigating how environmental exposures and age-related changes in the brain contribute to systemic metabolic disease. Her lab integrates conditional mouse genetics, multi-omics profiling, and in vivo metabolic physiology to uncover the molecular mechanisms driving brain aging and metabolic disease , and to identify new pharmacological targets for extending healthspan. This pathbreaking work aims to uncover new pathways and targets for improving metabolic health and resilience across the lifespan. Among her notable discoveries, Dr. Sadagurski discovered that SGLT2 inhibitors protect the brain and prevent Alzheimer's pathology, and her research has substantiated how developmental exposures determine aging rates decades later. These findings reshaped how researchers approach aging as an integrated process across time and systems. Learn more about Dr. Sadagurski’s research and lab here.
The 2026 Cristofalo Award will be presented on June 3rd at the American Aging Association (AGE) Annual Meeting, on in Provo, Utah; upon receiving the award, Dr. Sadagurski will share a lecture, “Pharmacological rejuvenation of the aging hypothalamus.” The 2026 Wright and Martin Awards will be presented by AFAR in early November at the Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting in National Harbor, Maryland, where Dr. Hodes will share a lecture and Dr. Barzilai will share remarks.
"AFAR's Scientific Awards of Distinction are named after individuals whose dedication and discoveries have made incomparable contributions the development of aging research while inspiring generations of investigators," notes Stephanie Lederman, EdM, AFAR Executive Director. "As AFAR celebrates its 45th anniversary in 2026, these awards remind us of the vital contributions of talented investigators at early and experienced stages in their careers. Our 2026 awardees build upon their namesakes' legacies while forging important advances in aging biology and geroscience. Dr. Barzilai, Dr. Hodes, and Dr. Sadagurski represent a commitment to rigorous research that will help us all live healthier, longer.”
AFAR’s Scientific Awards of Distinction, which also include the Terrie Fox Wetle Rising Star Award in Health Services and Aging Research to be announced in late spring 2026, are nominated by peers and selected by a panel of leading aging researchers. Learn more about the history of the awards and past honorees here.
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About AFAR - The American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR) is a national non-profit organization that supports and advances pioneering biomedical research that is revolutionizing how we live can healthier and longer. For nearly half a century, AFAR has served as the field’s talent incubator, providing $225,316,000 to 4,539 investigators at research institutions to date—and growing. A trusted leader and strategist, AFAR also works with public and private funders to steer high quality grant programs and inter-disciplinary research networks. AFAR-funded researchers are finding that modifying basic cellular processes can delay—or even prevent—many chronic diseases, often at the same time. They are discovering that it is never too late—or too early—to improve health. This groundbreaking science is paving the way for innovative new therapies that promise to improve and extend our quality of life—at any age. Learn more at www.afar.org.