New England Community Meeting

PKD Care & Research Update: University of Vermont Medical Center

Join us for the University of Vermont Medical Center, PKD Foundation Center of Excellence, 2026 Polycystic Kidney Disease Community Event. Participants will have the opportunity to meet our dedicated care team and learn about current and upcoming clinical research trials. Attendees will also learn about UVMMC’s partnership with Dartmouth Medical Center’s Kidney Transplant Program and how this collaboration supports comprehensive kidney care.

Meet our Guest Speakers:

Nuria Pastor-Soler, MD

Nephrologist
Associate Professor, Larner College of Medicine
Co-Director of the UVMMC Center of Excellence

Dr. Pastor’s expertise lies in providing medical care to individuals with kidney disease, dedicated to improving the health of individuals and our communities. Her current research focuses on discovering new treatments for polycystic kidney disease and exploring the experiences of individuals and families affected by kidney disease.

Margaret Butler, APRN, NP-C, CNN-NP
Co-director of the UVMMC PKD Center of Excellence
Ms. Butler’s experience lies in providing care for nephrology clinic patients and managing in-center hemodialysis at multiple satellite units across Vermont.

Kenneth R. Hallows, M.D., Ph.D., F.A.S.N, Nephrologist
Professor of Medicine, Larner College of Medicine
Robert F. & Genevieve B. Patrick Chair in Nephrology
Professor of Medicine
Network Division Chief of Nephrology.

Dr. Hallows’ scientific expertise and interests are in elucidating the molecular mechanisms by which transport proteins and kidney diseases are regulated by metabolic changes and kinases, especially the metabolic sensor AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK). He has substantial experience in studying the regulation of various epithelial transport proteins. Recent work has focused on translational avenues related to bioenergetics and the role of AMPK as a therapeutic target in ADPKD. Current work spans the research spectrum from the pre-clinical level to clinical trial studies aimed at finding new therapies for ADPKD. Specifically, recent studies have involved testing the repurposing of FDA-approved drugs like metformin and bempedoic acid for ADPKD treatment with a focus on evaluating new disease biomarkers in urine. It is hoped that the identification of new biomarkers for ADPKD can be used to monitor disease progression, severity and response to various therapies.

Richard J. Solomon MD
Nephrologist
Patrick Professor of Medicine, Larner College of Medicine
Dr. Solomon been practicing Nephrology for over 50 years and was the Division of Nephrology director for 20 years. His special interests are hypertension and acute kidney injuries. He has been the primary clinical researcher in the Division of Nephrology for the past few decades. He started the PKD Center of Excellence and he is still involved in PKD research in collaboration with Drs. Hallows and Pastor-Soler

Marios Prikis, MD, FACP, FEBTM
Transplant Nephrologist
Professor of Medicine, Larner Colege of Medicine
Professior of Medicine, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Division of Transplant Surgery

Dr Marios Prikis has a multinational education and experience in the fields of Medicine, Nephrology, and Transplantation Medicine/Immunology.  His research interests include utilization of innovative methods in transplantation diagnostics with donor derived cell free DNA and other markers of graft injury as well as measurement of renal reserve and glomerular filtration rate in living kidney donors.