Obstetrics & Gynecology

News and Events

Programs and providers of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine are often the focus of news stories and features appearing in major national media. We invite you to review some stories that typify the breakthrough accomplishments of our remarkable team and highlight the impact our care has had on patient’s lives.

2026 Ritu Banga Awards Support Innovative Research

1300 York Avenue

Four Weill Cornell Medicine investigators have received Ritu Banga Impact in Healthcare Research Awards. Endowed through a generous $5 million gift from Board of Fellows member Ritu Banga and her husband, Ajay Banga, each $50,000 award supports outstanding research aimed at closing knowledge gaps in clinical care to equalize outcomes across different populations.

“We are grateful to Board of Fellows member Ritu Banga and Ajay Banga for their vision in supporting groundbreaking research that challenges one-size-fits all treatment paradigms, and has the potential to transform patient care,” said Dr. Florencia Marcucci, associate dean for research at Weill Cornell Medicine.

This year’s award winners:

Dr. Revathy Chottekalapanda 

Dr. Revathy Chottekalapanda

Dr. Revathy Chottekalapanda

assistant professor of neuroscience in psychiatry

Project Title: Patient-Specific Cellular Models of Depression and Treatment Response

Weill Cornell Medicine Receives NIH Grant to Test Novel Male Contraceptive

sperm cells swimming

Weill Cornell Medicine has received a four-year, $8.2 million grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) to develop and test an experimental on-demand male contraceptive pill that temporarily stops sperm in their tracks. Dr. Jochen Buck and Dr. Lonny Levin, both professors of pharmacology at Weill Cornell, are leading the project to help fill an urgent global need for new contraceptive options for men.

levin and buck crop

Dr. Lonny Levin (left) and Dr. Jochen Buck

Currently, about half of all pregnancies worldwide are unplanned, and contraceptive options for men have been limited to condoms and vasectomies. As a result, the burden of contraception largely falls to women, who often rely on long-term use of hormonal contraceptives, which may have a variety of side effects, Dr. Levin said.

Blocking a Cellular Stress Pathway May Help Preserve Insulin-Producing Cells

pancreatic beta cells

Researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine have identified a molecular pathway that contributes to the death of insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. Experiments with preclinical models and human pancreatic cells found that blocking certain proteins in the pathway helped protect beta cells from excessive cellular stress. The discovery, recently published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, suggests a new strategy to preserve the cells that regulate blood sugar and to potentially treat type 2 diabetes.

Dr. Laura Alonso

Dr. Laura Alonso

Diabetes is a complex, chronic disease with two forms. In type 1, the immune system attacks and destroys beta cells, leaving the body with little or no insulin. In type 2, the body’s cells become less responsive to insulin, so beta cells must churn out more of the hormone to keep blood sugar in check. Over time, beta cells can become dysfunctional and some are lost through cell death, further compromising insulin production.

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