CSR’s primary role is to handle the receipt and review of all grant applications that NIH receives. NIH separates the review process from funding decisions.
For Reviewers
Reviewers are critical to our mission to see that NIH grant applications receive, fair, independent, expert, and timely scientific reviews. We appreciate the generosity with which reviewers give their time.
Study Sections
Applications are reviewed in study sections (Scientific Review Groups, SRGs). Review Branches (RBs) are clusters of study sections based on scientific discipline.
Review Meetings
Applications are reviewed in study sections (Scientific Review Groups, SRGs). Review Branches (RBs) are clusters of study sections based on scientific discipline.
Evaluation Initiatives
Access data visualizations, reports, and analytical tools to track progress.
About CSR
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Dr. Elaine Sierra-Rivera serves as Chief of the Endocrine and Metabolic Systems Review Branch (EMS RB).After receiving her Ph.D. in cancer biology/radiation biology at the University of Iowa, Dr. Sierra-Rivera had postdoctoral training in the pathology department at Brown University. She then went…
Dr. Bryan Crenshaw earned his Ph.D. in biology from the University of California, San Diego, where he studied the role of transcription factors in the development of the pituitary and brain. After postdoctoral training at UCSD, he joined the faculty of the University of Chicago in the Departments…
Dr. Elena Smirnova serves as Chief of the Molecular Genetics and Genomics Review Branch (MGG RB).
Dr. Elena Smirnova earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry/biophysics from Heidelberg University in Germany. She did her post-doctoral training in the Department of Biological Chemistry at the UCLA School of…
Dr. Eleni Liapi received her M.D. at the University of Ioannina Faculty of Medicine, Greece, and residency training in diagnostic radiology, in Greece. She completed a post-doctoral research fellowship in interventional radiology at Johns Hopkins University and was subsequently appointed as faculty…
Dr. Elia Ortenberg serves as Chief of the Social and Community Influences Across the Lifecourse Review Branch (SCIL RB).Dr. Elia Kwee Ortenberg (formerly: Femia) received her Ph.D. in human development and family studies from the Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA. Before coming to…
Dr. Elisaveta Voynova received her Ph.D. in immunology from the Bulgarian Academy of Science, where she developed chimeric antibodies as novel immunotherapy for autoimmune disease. She then completed her postdoctoral training at the Autoimmunity and Functional Genomics Section of the…
Dr. Ella Jones earned her Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of California at Davis and completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Oxford. She has over 12 years of research experience in the private sector, pioneering the development of targeted molecules for cancer detection.…
Dr. Emily Foley completed her Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular pharmacology at Harvard University, where she studied the mechanisms that control eukaryotic DNA replication and ensure it occurs only once per cell cycle. She then pursued postdoctoral training at The Rockefeller University,…
Dr. Emily Kilroy earned her Ph.D. in occupational science with a concentration in neuroscience from the University of Southern California (USC). She also holds a Master of Science from University College London and Yale University, specializing in developmental neuropathology. Dr. Kilroy has…
Dr. Erica Spears trained as an interdisciplinary scientist whose research focused on chronic disease prevention and health behaviors in historically marginalized populations. Dr. Spears earned her Doctor of Philosophy in health education from Texas A&M University. She completed her postdoctoral…
Dr. Hernandez-Ochoa received an M.D. degree in general medicine and surgery and a Ph.D. degree in neurophysiology from the National Autonomous University of Mexico. During his postdoctoral training at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, he investigated the role of calcium signals and…
Dr. Eugene Carstea serves as Chief of the Respiratory, Cardiac, and Circulatory Sciences Review Branch (RCCS RB). Dr. Eugene Carstea is the Chief of CSR's Cardiovascular and Respiratory Sciences (CVRS) Integrated Review Group. He earned his Ph.D. in microbiology (molecular biology) from Clemson…
Dr. Frederique Yiannikouris received her Ph.D. in nutrition from the University of Clermont Ferrand I in France and completed a post-doctoral training in obesity and cardiovascular diseases at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky, USA. After her post-doctoral work, she became an…
Dr. Gagan Pandya serves as Chief of the Basic Neuroscience Review Branch (BN RB).Before coming to CSR, Dr. Gagan Pandya was a staff scientist and a team leader for the comparative genomics program within the Pathogen Functional Genomics Resource Center at the J. Craig Venter Institute in Rockville…
Dr. Ganesan Ramesh obtained his doctorate from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India, where his dissertation focused on the role of TGF-βs in pre-implantation embryo development and its regulation by steroid hormones in the uterus. His expertise is in kidney pathophysiology and…
Dr. Ghenima Dirami received a Ph.D. in biochemical endocrinology from the University of London in England. Before joining NIH, Dr. Dirami received her postdoctoral training at Georgetown University. Her research in the Lung Biology Laboratory there focused on oxidant-induced lung injury and on the…