In 2021, ISAPP launched the Early Career Researcher Award. As this initiative was spearheaded by ISAPP co-founder and longtime board member Prof. Glenn Gibson PhD, this award was renamed to honor him: “Glenn Gibson Early Career Researcher Award”. The intent of this award is to recognize excellence in research in early career researchers in the fields of probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, postbiotics or fermented foods.

Each year, the winner receives a plaque, speaking slot at the annual ISAPP meeting, travel award to the ISAPP meeting, and an unrestricted cash award ($1500 USD).

2025 applications closed November 10

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Winner 2024

Dr. Boushra Dalile PhD, KU Leuven, Belgium
Dr. Dalile is a researcher who moved from studying psychology and cognitive neuroscience into biomedical sciences, completing her PhD in 2021. She now focuses on the gut-brain axis – specifically, the mechanistic role of colonic short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) as mediators of prebiotic effects on stress-related mental disorders.

Past Winner 2023

Dr. Paul Gill PhD, Monash University, Australia
Dr Gill studies the links between diet and the immune system, with focus on how short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) affect immunity in healthy individuals. Further, he investigates how consuming fermentable fibers along with SCFAs in fermented foods such as vinegar and kombucha may be used as a dietary treatment for inflammatory bowel disease.

Past Winners 2022

Dr. Martin Laursen PhD, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark
Dr. Laursen has demonstrated excellence in his work on the impact of probiotics and human milk oligosaccharides on infant gut microbiota and health.

Dr. Eirini Dimidi RD PhD, King’s College London, UK
Dr. Dimidi has carried out important work on probiotics, prebiotics and fermented foods and their impact on symptoms of constipation.

Past Winners 2021

Dr. Irina Spacova PhD, University of Antwerp, Belgium
Dr. Spacova studies topical probiotics, including those targeting the respiratory tract that may be applied via an effective, innovative delivery system, providing a means to expand probiotics to new body sites and novel health endpoints.
Dr. Car Reen Kok PhD, University of Nebraska – Lincoln, USA
Dr. Kok’s research focuses on untangling factors leading to responsiveness or non-responsiveness to prebiotic interventions through metagenomics readouts. This line of research has great potential to personalize prebiotics, thereby increasing their effectiveness.