Faculty members at the UNC School of Medicine have recently secured a series of competitive grant awards from several branches of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other research foundations. The grants will support a range of projects addressing cancer, infectious diseases, neurological disorders, and advances in medical technology.
Among the awardees is Imran Rizvi, who received funding from the NIH National Cancer Institute to study photodynamic alteration of cell membrane lipids as a way to enhance chemotherapy efficacy in metastatic ovarian cancer. Edward Browne was awarded a grant by the NIH National Institute on Drug Abuse for his work on transcriptional inactivation of the central nervous system HIV reservoir using Tat-targeting lipid nanoparticles.
Charles Perou will investigate molecular mechanisms involved in metastasis organ tropism with support from the NIH National Cancer Institute. Qi Zhang’s project focuses on epigenetic regulation related to aging-associated inflammation and is funded by the NIH National Institute on Aging.
Katelyn Rittenhouse has been granted a career development award from the NIH National Institute of Child Health and Human Development for her research into AI-assisted ultrasound for early pregnancy localization. Hyejung Won’s project on single-cell analysis related to Alzheimer’s disease regulatory elements also received significant backing from the NIH National Institute on Aging.
Sarah Conlon’s research into antibiotic treatment failure in Klebsiella pneumoniae liver abscesses will be supported by funding from the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Richard Loeser is working on targeting signaling pathways with small molecules in osteoarthritis, with support from the NIH National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.
Guorong Wu obtained funding from the Foundation of Hope for Research and Treatment of Mental Illness for his study into neurodevelopmental origins of Alzheimer’s disease using a lifespan approach. Joshua Strauss received an equipment grant from the NIH Office of the Director for acquiring advanced cryo-electron microscopy instrumentation.
Other faculty recognized include Roland Tisch, Brian Conlon, Emily Werder, Katharine McGinigle, Adam Rosenthal, Dominique Higgins, Greg Scherrer, Monica Diaz, Lisa Rahangdale, and Mark Zylka—each leading projects spanning immunology, environmental health sciences, neurology, diabetes research, vascular medicine, pediatric brain development studies, antibiotic resistance mechanisms, genetic engineering technologies and more.
These new grants highlight ongoing efforts at UNC School of Medicine to advance biomedical science across multiple disciplines while supporting both established investigators and early-career researchers through federal funding opportunities.
