Award Data

Project Summary/Abstract The current standard of care for skin cancer diagnosis, biopsy, is invasive, slow, and burdensome in cost. Skin cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the US. Biopsy of suspicious skin lesion is the key step of skin cancer diagnosis. 15-20 million skin biopsies are performed in the US annually. Once biopsied tissue is removed from a patient, the biopsy specimen is ...

Project Summary/Abstract Platelet-mediated thrombosis causes both coronary arterial disease (CAD) and stroke, the first and fifth most common causes of mortality in the US. Antiplatelet agents, typically aspirin and/or clopidogrel, significantly improve survival in patients with CAD or stroke and have remained a mainstay of treatment for more than two decades. Yet despite the consensus that platel ...

ABSTRACTAlpha-1 antitrypsin (A1AT) is well-established as a biotherapeutic used for the treatment of alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, and shows promise for treating a variety of other diseases. However, A1AT augmentation therapy carries unnecessary risk since it relies upon the weekly transfusion of plasma-derived product, which presents supply chain and contaminant risks. This could be remedied wi ...

ABSTRACT Intestinal stomas such as ileostomies and colostomies are openings of the intestinal tract surgically exteriorized onto the abdominal surface to divert enteric content away from distal cancer, obstruction, inflammation, and infection 5. In the US alone, about 1.5 million people have stomas14. Prolapse, or protrusion, of the bowel through the stoma is a common complication that can cause p ...

AbstractDespite effective antiretroviral therapy (ART), latent proviruses can reinitiate viral production upon cell stimulation or treatment interruption. The viral Tat protein enhances transcript elongation from the HIV-1 promoter, controlling the switch between latency and active viral production. The block-and-lock functional cure aims at the transcriptional silencing of the viral reservoir, re ...

Project Summary/Abstract: Clinical Decision Support System to Optimize Neonatal Nutrition and Growth Nutrition, defined as energy, macronutrients (protein, fat, and carbohydrates), and micronutrients (e.g., electrolytes), is a critical feature of care for preterm infants in the neonatal intensive unit (NICU). Inadequate nutrition is associated with growth and neurodevelopmental impairment, and inc ...

ABSTRACT Remote trials are led and coordinated by a local investigative team, but are based remotely, typically in the participant’s home. Remote trials offer several advantages over traditional in-person trials including: 1) a wider participant pool, 2) reduced regulatory hurdles, and 3) reduced participant burden. Remote trials face one key methodological limitation: the need for biomarker col ...

Project Summary/Abstract Low oxygen (hypoxic) environments are known to be important for maintaining the small number of adult stem cells in the human body, such as in bone marrow. These conditions are also believed to enable dormant cancer cells to survive and metastasize years or decades after the original tumor has been destroyed and the reason why bone marrow is one of the most common sites of ...

PROJECT SUMMARY Peptide therapeutics combine high potency and selectivity, and engender fewer side effects than traditional small molecules. This has fueled interest in peptides filling the gap between ‘biologics’ and small molecules, as peptide-based compounds have key desired properties that are distinct both of the other classes. A major challenge remains to extend the short half-life of na ...

Summary/Abstract Genomic sequencing is rapidly becoming a standard tool in diagnosing complex diagnostic cases, especially in critically ill newborns, and patients suffering from rare diseases. Current programs focused on addressing these cases utilise a team-based approach to identify, interpret and evaluate a patient’s genetic variants. These diverse teams include bioinformaticians, medical ge ...