Kate Clowes Moster wins the 2026 Dr. Anne Karpay Award in Structural Biology

Posted by daviskd2 on Thursday, November 13, 2025 in News.

By Karen Davis

Congratulations to Kate Clowes Moster, of the Sanders lab, on being named the 2026 recipient of the Dr. Anne Karpay Award in Structural Biology. “I’m really honored to be selected for the Karpay Award,” Clowes Moster said.

Kate began her scientific journey in West Virginia, where she grew up fascinated with nature and animals. This progressed into an interest in science and research after attending several science-based summer camps during her middle and high school years. Kate eventually found her way to the University of Kentucky to earn her Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry.

As an undergraduate, Kate honed her research skills by performing research in the lab of Dr. Luke Bradley, participating in an REU program at Miami University in the lab of Dr. Gary Lorigan and contributing to an NSF SURF program at Scripps Florida in the lab of Dr. Scott Hansen.

Kate is a graduate student in the Biochemistry Graduate Program and a member of the Sanders lab since 2020. Her research focuses on the potassium channel KCNQ1 and mutations that cause a cardiac disorder called type 1 long QT syndrome (LQT1). Sanders lab researchers have determined that mistrafficking is a common cause of KCNQ1 dysfunction in LQT1. Kate’s effort to search for small molecules that might remedy this mistrafficking provides an early foundation for possible drug discovery efforts to treat LQT1 and related cardiac disorders.

“Kate is a versatile scientist who is exceptionally devoted to rigor and reproducibility,” Professor Sanders said. “She lives out her belief in the importance of service and is always willing to step up and help out!”

Throughout her scientific career, Kate has collaborated with the Jens Meiler lab at Vanderbilt and the Alfred George lab at Northwestern University. She maintains a close working relationship with the team at the Vanderbilt High-throughput Screening Core as well as the VICB Molecular Design and Synthesis Core and the VUMC Flow Cytometry Shared Resource.

When she’s not working on her research, Kate enjoys eating at new Nashville-area restaurants with her husband and friends in tow and cooking tasty meals at home. “I love to cook, and I love to eat!” exclaimed Clowes Moster. She prefers restaurants and breweries with fun events, such as trivia nights or pop-up themes.

Kate presents Avoiding traffic jams: Correcting KCNQ1 mistrafficking and navigating grad school on Tuesday, January 20, 2026, as part of the MBTP/CSB Seminar Series. The seminar begins at 12:20pm in 1220 MRB3 with the award presentation and reception to follow.

“Anne Karpay has such a special legacy throughout the CSB,” Clowes Moster said. “It’s a great honor to be selected for this award in her memory.”

The Dr. Anne Karpay Award in Structural Biology was established in 2010 to honor the memory of Dr. Anne Karpay, who died after a four-year battle with breast cancer. It is funded entirely by donations to an endowment managed through the Development Office of the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Donate to the endowment fund.