Georgette Kanmogne, Ph.D., has two passions: family and research.
On July 20, those passions came together as Dr. Kanmogne’s family watched her receive the 2006 Nicholas Badami Fellowship Award for Excellence in HIV/AIDS research.
Dr. Kanmogne is an assistant professor, who joined UNMC in January 2005.
Howard Gendelman, M.D., chairman of the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience at UNMC, said the award is designed to help young investigators promote their carreers and become leader in HIV/AIDS research.
The Nicholas Badami Fellowship was established by Badami’s widow, Laura Lauer, to honor her late husband. Dr. Gendelman was Badami’s physician while working at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
Badami was an adamant supporter of HIV/AIDS research who died in 1993. The first fellowship was awarded that year. The award is given every other year and four UNMC faculty members have received the fellowship in past years including Drs. Adelina Nukuna, Hans Nottet, Jenae Limoges and Larisa Poluektova.
“Georgette is intelligent, determined, a visionary and one embarking on a terrific journey — that is not only to understand HIV/AIDS, but to make a difference in the new works she will be doing in Africa,” Dr. Gendelman said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 26 million Africans currently are infected with HIV/AIDS. Dr. Kanmogne wants to help eliminate the AIDS epidemic in Africa.
“Through my research I want to be able to give people more advanced knowledge about the disease,” Dr. Kanmogne said. “Also, I want to be able to make a difference in people’s lives by helping find better treatments.”