Dr Maria Fragiadaki has been selected to deliver the UKKA Stewart Cameron Lecture for Outstanding Contribution to the Basic Scientific Understanding of Kidney Disease at UK Kidney Week 2026, in recognition of her significant contribution to experimental kidney science and her leadership in advancing fundamental understanding of kidney disease mechanisms. 

The Stewart Cameron Lecture is a prestigious annual honour awarded to a non-clinical basic scientist whose work has contributed substantially to kidney disease research. Established in memory of Stewart Cameron, former Professor of Renal Medicine at Guy’s Hospital and past President of the UK Renal Association, European Renal Association and International Society of Nephrology, the lecture recognises excellence in experimental research, translational relevance and leadership within a developing scientific field. 

Dr Fragiadaki was appointed Senior Lecturer at Queen Mary University of London in 2022 and is based at the William Harvey Research Institute at Charterhouse Square. She is the recipient of a highly competitive UK Research and Innovation Future Leaders Fellowship (2021–2027), reflecting sustained national recognition of the quality, originality and trajectory of her research programme. She has previously held a Kidney Research UK Intermediate Fellowship and a Springboard Award from the Academy of Medical Sciences. 

She was awarded a PhD in Molecular Medicine from Imperial College London and holds a BSc (Hons) in Genetics from the University of Aberdeen. Her postdoctoral training included positions at Imperial College London and the MRC Centre for Biomedical Genetics at the University of Sheffield, where she further developed her expertise in experimental kidney biology. 

Dr Fragiadaki’s laboratory focuses on elucidating biological pathways that enhance healthy lifespan, with particular emphasis on cellular proliferation, inflammation and stress responses in kidney and cardiovascular disease. Her work examines the interplay between RNA and RNA-binding proteins in maintaining cellular homeostasis within renal epithelial and vascular cells, using both in vitro and in vivo models of disease. 

Her research portfolio includes studies in PKD, ADPKD, renal toxicity and drug screening. A key area of current interest is the development of kidney-on-a-chip models using patient-derived cells from people with ADPKD. This approach aims to create more physiologically relevant disease models for drug testing, with the potential to improve prediction of drug efficacy and toxicity, accelerate therapeutic discovery and identify biomarkers of disease progression and treatment response. 

Dr Fragiadaki’s work exemplifies the aims of the Stewart Cameron Lecture for Outstanding Contribution to the Basic Scientific Understanding of Kidney Disease, combining rigorous experimental science with clear translational relevance and leadership in shaping the future research agenda in kidney disease. 

The lecture will be delivered in person during the morning plenary at  UK Kidney Week 2026, taking place at 8:30 am on Thursday 12 March 2026 in Harrogate.