Award established in 2012
2025 Winner of Avanti Polar Lipids / EBSA Award: Rumiana Dimova, Germany
The prize was presented during the 15th European Biophysics Congress held 30th June – 4th July 2025 in Rome, Italy.
“For her pioneering development work on giant unilamellar vesicles”
Press release from the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces: https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/6895557/ebsa-award-for-dimova
Title of presentation given at EBSA2025:
Giant vesicles unleashed: probing biomembrane marvels and mysteries
Avanti Polar Lipids, Incorporated established a biennial award to be given by EBSA. The award is presented at the upcoming EBSA Congress to an investigator for outstanding contributions to our understanding of lipid biophysics. The winner receives an honorarium of US$ 3,000 and a medal, and will present a lecture at the Congress. Under normal conditions, it is a condition of being awarded the Prize, that the Awardee attends the congress in the year that the Prize is awarded. Free registration for the congress, and two nights accommodation only will be provided.
Eligibility
- The nominee will be expected to have made important and well-recognized contributions to an understanding of lipid biophysics, including but not limited to the metabolism, enzymology, structure, or function of lipids or lipid membranes.
- The nominee must not have previously received an Avanti Award from any Society, and may not nominate themselves.
- The nominee must be a member of an EBSA adherent member Society that is in good standing.
- The nominee may be of any nationality or academic rank, and may be affiliated with non-academic institutions provided that the work for which they are to be acknowledged has been published in a recognized scholarly journal, and they are resident in Europe in the year of nomination.
- The nominator must submit completed nomination forms and the required documents.
Nominations packets must include the following:
- Completed Award Nomination Form.
- Letter (no more than 2 pages) supporting the candidacy of the nominee, and highlighting specific publications deemed representative or especially worthy of recognition.
- Letter from the nominee accepting the nomination, and a commitment (excepting exceptional extenuating circumstances) to present a Plenary lecture at the EBSA congress at which the award is made. Additionally, a review article for the European Biophysics Journal is desired, submitted within 3 months of the award being made known the recipient.
- Two supporting letters from other members of an EBSA Member Society.
- Nominee’s curriculum vitae.
The nomination packet, in PDF format, should be emailed to the current EBSA Secretary: John Seddon.
Nominations for EBSA 2025 are no longer being accepted.
An invitation to submit nominations for prizes to be awarded at the EBSA2027 congress will be sent out in 2026. This page will be updated with the relevant information and specific details of how to submit nominations.
| Year | Winner | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Rumiana Dimova | Potsdam, Germany | |
| 2023 | Dimitrios Stamou | Copenhagen, Denmark | |
| 2021 | Elina Ikonen | Helsinki, Finland | |
| 2019 | Bruno Antonny | Valbonne, France | Lecture |
| 2017 | Jean Marie Ruysschaert | Bruxelles, Belgium | Lecture |
| 2015 | J. Antoinette Killian | Utrecht, The Netherlands | Lecture, Invited review |
| 2013 | Félix M. Goñi | Bizkaia, Spain | Lecture |
2023 Winner of Avanti Polar Lipids / EBSA Award: Dimitrios Stamou, Denmark
The prize was presented during the 14th European Biophysics Congress held 31st July – 4th August 2023 in Stockholm, Sweden.