Frank J. Tusa Pilot Award for Research in Hepatic Encephalopathy

About this program

The AASLD Foundation’s Frank J. Tusa Pilot Award provides $50,000 for one year to support innovative, hypothesis-based research testing new interventions to improve outcomes for people with hepatic encephalopathy. Projects must be exploratory, high-impact, and include clinical interaction, patient data, or patient samples, with 1–2 aims feasible within the award term. Applicants must be AASLD members, NIH-defined early-stage investigators at or below the associate professor level, and devote at least 20% effort to the project; those below associate professor must have an AASLD-member mentor. Research must be conducted at an eligible nonprofit institution in the United States, Canada, or Mexico, and applications are due December 7, 2026.