Xin Jin, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Neuroscience and a member of the Dorris Neuroscience Center, has won the Larry L. Hillblom Foundation Award and the Klingenstein-Simons Fellowship Award in Neuroscience for her groundbreaking research in neurodevelopment.

The Hillblom Foundation offers funding awards to prestigious investigators who are initiating their independent research careers. Jin has been awarded a $100,000 annual grant for up to three years based on her highly promising research, training, distinct research plans and future milestones. She will attend the Annual Hillblom Scientific Meeting in October to present her findings to date.

The Klingenstein-Simons Fellowship Awards recognize outstanding, emerging scientists who show promise in improving the field’s understanding of neurological disorders. As an award recipient, Jin is being acknowledged for her discoveries revealing the mechanisms underlying these conditions, as well as the potential for these findings to be translated into treatments. Jin will receive $225,000 over a three-year period to support her research, and she will attend an annual conference each May to discuss her work and connect with other pioneering neuroscientists.

At Scripps Research, Jin is focused on mapping the cellular mechanisms that lead to different brain disorders. Specifically, her lab is developing innovative tools to uncover the ways genetic and physiological factors interact to impact neural development. Jin has been the recipient of numerous additional awards and honors, including recently being named as one of MIT Technology Review’s 35 Innovators Under 35.