Berna Sozen Wins Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Biomedical Science

Berna Sozen, PhD, assistant professor of genetics at Yale School of Medicine (YSM), has won the 2026 Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Biomedical Science. A developmental biologist, Sozen uses stem cell-based models to study the earliest days and weeks of human development.

The Vilcek Foundation prizes have been awarded annually since 2006 and they celebrate “immigrant contributions that propel innovation in the United States while championing excellence in creative and scientific disciplines more broadly,” the foundation said in a press release.

Sozen, who joined the YSM faculty in 2020, was recognized for “pioneering innovative experimental models to advance understanding of human development and for championing inclusive research environments,” said the Vilcek Foundation.

During her postgraduate training, Sozen’s research showed that stem cells—outside of the body, growing in a dish—could self-organize and model the development of an embryo. This finding allowed studies of the early days of embryo formation in a way not possible before.

At YSM, Sozen’s laboratory continues to establish new techniques for studying embryo development in a more relevant biological context and uncovering an essential role for glucose in embryonic development. She received the National Institutes of Health’s New Innovator Award in 2022 for her research contributions, and was named a Pew Biomedical Scholar in 2025.

“I am honored to receive the 2026 Vilcek Prize, as it is one of the few awards that values both scientific excellence and the immigrant story,” says Sozen, who is originally from Turkey. “It feels like a rare opportunity to bring my full self—my science and my journey—into a single narrative, and this recognition also reflects the dedication of my lab, and the collective work behind it.”

Photos courtesy of the Vilcek Foundation.