Mayo Clinic Fellow Wins Inaugural 2026 ACMG Foundation Award for Genomic Diagnostics Innovation

The ACMG Foundation for Genetic and Genomic Medicine has announced the first recipient of its newly established Rising Scholar Trainee Award. Qiliang (Andy) Ding, PhD, a Laboratory Genetics and Genomics fellow at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, has been selected from eligible trainees who published in Genetics in Medicine Open during 2025.

The award, established in partnership with Genetics in Medicine Open, is designed to recognize outstanding research by early-career investigators in the field of medical genetics and genomics. It will be given annually to a trainee who served as first author, co-first author, or corresponding author on a paper in the journal that demonstrates scientific impact, methodological innovation, and contributions to advancing the field.

About the Inaugural Recipient

Ding earned his PhD in Genetics from Cornell University before working as a genome analyst at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. He is now completing an ACGME-accredited Laboratory Genetics and Genomics fellowship at the Mayo Clinic, where his research centers on clinical implementation of emerging genomic technologies with a particular focus on data analytics and bioinformatics.

His award-winning work, published in Genetics in Medicine Open, addresses practical questions about integrating advanced genomic sequencing and analysis methods into clinical laboratory settings - work that sits at the intersection of technology development and patient care. The specific focus on bioinformatics and data analytics reflects a broader shift in clinical genomics, where the bottleneck has moved from generating sequence data to interpreting it accurately and efficiently.

"I am truly honored and deeply grateful to the ACMG Foundation and Genetics in Medicine Open for this recognition," said Ding. "I would like to thank Dr. Wei Shen, PhD, FACMG, and the team at the Mayo Clinic for their mentorship and support. As a Laboratory Genetics and Genomics fellow, I am committed to advancing genomic diagnostics through innovative technologies and look forward to contributing to the field as a laboratory geneticist."

The Award's Purpose in a Changing Field

Laboratory genetics and genomics has been transformed over the past decade by falling sequencing costs, expanding clinical indications for genomic testing, and growing recognition that genomic variants can inform diagnosis and treatment across a wide range of conditions from rare inherited diseases to cancer. The number of laboratories offering clinical genomic testing has expanded substantially, and with it the demand for laboratory geneticists who can bridge cutting-edge genomic science and routine clinical application.

Awards recognizing trainees in this space serve a practical function beyond honoring individual achievement: they identify rising researchers whose work is worth following, and they signal to the field which directions of inquiry are considered important. Recognition at the trainee stage influences career trajectories, funding opportunities, and the types of problems young investigators pursue.

"Dr. Ding's work exemplifies exceptional innovation and methodological rigor in genetic and genomic medicine, pushing the boundaries of our field with novel technologies that hold great promise for advancing patient care," said Bo Yuan, PhD, FACMG, Editor-in-Chief of Genetics in Medicine Open. "His work demonstrates outstanding scholarly excellence at this early career stage and clearly positions him as a rising leader in medical genetics and genomics."

Eligibility and Selection

The award is open to trainees enrolled in ABMGG- or ACGC-accredited programs, their international equivalents, or individuals in their first year post-training. Selection is made by a committee of Genetics in Medicine Open editors based on four criteria: scientific impact, novelty, methodological innovation, and contributions to research that promote fairness and respect in the field.

The inclusion of the fourth criterion reflects an increasing recognition within medical genetics that the field's rapid technological advancement must be paired with attention to equity - ensuring that genomic medicine benefits patients across diverse populations and that the research enterprise is conducted inclusively.

The award will be given annually going forward, establishing an ongoing recognition for trainee researchers in the field. As genomic medicine continues to evolve - with whole-genome sequencing, multiomics integration, and AI-assisted variant interpretation all advancing rapidly - the type of early-career work recognized here will increasingly define clinical practice in laboratory genetics.