The Ragon Institute is proud to announce the 2025 recipients of the Giammaria and Sabrina Giuliani Faculty Support Fund, an endowed fund dedicated to advancing transformative research at the Institute. This year’s awardees are Gaurav Gaiha, MD, DPhil, Azza Idris, MD, PhD, Aaron Schmidt, PhD, and Hernandez Moura Silva, PhD, four exceptional scientists whose work is shaping the future of immunology and global health.

Established in 2023 through the generosity of Giammaria and Sabrina Giuliani, philanthropists committed to advancing education and health worldwide, the Giuliani Faculty Support Fund provides critical resources to support our faculty. This year’s recipients exemplify the fund’s mission, tackling some of the most pressing challenges in global infectious diseases:

• Gaurav Gaiha, MD, DPhil, is focused on developing an HIV vaccine, with initial trials set to begin in Africa later this year.
• Azza Idris, MD, PhD, is pursuing groundbreaking work on more effective malaria treatments for children in sub-Saharan Africa.
• Aaron Schmidt, PhD, is identifying new viruses harbored in bats that could pose pandemic threats, deepening our understanding of zoonotic diseases.
• Hernandez Moura Silva, PhD, is exploring macrophage-driven immune responses and fostering collaborations with Brazil to address pressing global health challenges.

The Giulianis’ endowment empowers Ragon faculty to tackle critical questions in global health, ensuring that their research has a lasting impact on human health worldwide.

As part of their philanthropic efforts, Giammaria and Sabrina established the Giuliani Foundation, dedicated to advancing education and health as well as promoting economic wellbeing in developing countries.

The Foundation has funded a wide breadth of projects through their philanthropy — including the COVID-19 response in Italy, vocational training for young adults in developing countries, as well as research into medical conditions such as cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, and HIV/AIDS, among other projects.

The Ragon Institute is honored to have such visionary partners in the Giuliani family, whose philanthropy continues to drive advances in immunology and global health. Congratulations to the 2025 Giuliani Scholars on this well-deserved recognition.