Each year, the European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO) and the Novo Nordisk Foundation, honours exceptional research contributions that enhance our understanding of obesity, its causes, complications, prevention, and management.
This year, the Obesity Prize for Excellence was awarded to Professor Kirsi Pietiläinen for her outstanding and innovative research on obesity and its related complications. In addition to the Obesity Prize, EASO and the Novo Nordisk Foundation have announced four New Investigator Awards, celebrating emerging leaders in obesity research.
One of the recipients of the New Investigator Award in the Basic Science category is Roksana Pirzgalska, a post-doctoral researcher at the Champalimaud Foundation in Portugal. Dr. Pirzgalska was recognised for her groundbreaking discovery that sympathetic innervation in adipose tissue drives leptin-induced lipolysis. She also identified the first functional neuroimmune component in adipose tissue: sympathetic neuron-associated macrophages. With the support of the EASO - Novo Nordisk Foundation award grant, Dr. Pirzgalska will further explore the role of gut neuroepithelial circuits in intestinal immune responses and nutrient absorption. Her research aims to harness neuronal cues to improve metabolic parameters and nutrient absorption in patients with metabolic diseases.
Other notable recipients of the New Investigator Awards include:
Childhood Obesity — Veera Houttu, a Senior Researcher and Clinical Nutritionist at the Centre of Nutrition and Food Research at the University of Turku, Finland, has a strong track record in research on nutrition and metabolic diseases, as well as translating clinical results to metabolic mechanisms.
Clinical Research — Rima Chakaroun, a clinician-scientist and internal medicine specialist in endocrinology at the University Hospital Leipzig, Germany, and the Wallenberg Laboratory, Gothenburg, Sweden investigates a wide range of endocrine and metabolic disorders, with a primary focus on obesity, microbiome, nutrition and sex-specific obesity trajectories.
Public Health — Maria Kafyra is a dietitian/nutritionist and postdoctoral researcher, who has worked and studied in Greece, the United Kingdom, France, and the United States. Her work focuses on identifying obesity-related determinants of health and developing personalised interventions which address individual genetic differences in metabolism and treatment responses, aligning with the growing need for personalised healthcare strategies.
The prize and awards will be officially presented at the 32nd European Congress on Obesity, 11-14 May 2025 in Malaga, Spain, where delegates will have the opportunity to hear an award lecture from the Obesity Prize for Excellence winner and presentations from the New Investigator Award winners. Registration is available: https://eco2025.org
For additional information regarding the criteria and application process for the Obesity Prize for Excellence and New Investigator Awards, please visit: https://easo.org/about-easo/easo-nnf-prize-and-awards/
This text was adapted from the press release prepared by the European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO), Communications team.
