Category: feature

UNC School of Medicine researchers Drs. Mark Zylka and Ben Philpot are partnering with AskBio to develop a gene therapy treatment for Angelman syndrome, a rare neurogenetic disorder with no cure. Preclinical evidence has shown that gene therapy may improve motor outcomes and reduce seizures, potentially transforming the lives of...

The NIH National Human Genome Research Insititute’s Genomic Medicine Group named UNC Department of Medicine and UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s study as one of the top 10 advances in genomic medicine in 2019. This study found that continuous use of clopidogrel in patients who are genetic “non-responders” is associated...

Drs. Erin Carey, Steven Young, Jorge Oldan, and Yueh Lee have received a $50,000 grant from NC TraCS to study non-surgical methods to diagnose endometriosis lesions. This grant will be used to study the usage of PET scans and MRI’s as tools for diagnosis.

Dr. Gaorav Gupta and Dr. Bhisham Chera from UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center led the study which found this blood test to be 99% accurate in detecting HPV-linked oropharyngeal cancer. This blood test provides a  non-invasive option to monitor patients after finishing cancer treatment.

Dr. Matthew Hirsch, assistant professor in the UNC Department of Ophthalmology and member of UNC’s Gene Therapy Center, leads the pioneering research of utilizing gene therapy to prevent vision loss for patients with MPS I. His new method, which will soon be tested in a clinical trial, brings the potential...

Palforzia is a newly approved medication that mitigates the consequences of  accidental exposure to peanuts. Dr. Wesley Burks and Dr. Edwin Kim,  members of  the UNC Children’s Research Institute, were key partners in spearheading the research that led to the development of this groundbreaking treatment.

Antonio Amelio, PhD, researcher at UNC’s Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, is part of a team that has created a new self-illuminating protein complex which removes the need for an external light source in optogenetics. This new discovery has the potential to give researchers better insight into cancer cell behaviors and...

Hongwei Du, PhD has been awarded $30,000 by The Lung Cancer Initiative of North Carolina (LCI) to research novel treatment targeting brain metastasis of non-small cell lung cancer. His research focuses on developing a new CAR-T immunotherapy which could transform the future of lung cancer treatment.

The Conquer Cancer Foundation of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation have awarded Emily Ray, MD, MPH, $50,000 to support her work in developing predictive models to determine late stage breast cancer patient’s prognosis. This tool will assist with better treatment planning, which can...

Dr. Coombs, winner of the Young Investigator Award, is receiving $225,000 over three years to study the relationship between prostate cancer and clonal hematopoiesis, a condition where genetic mutations accumulate in groups of blood cells. Her research may potentially uncover new methods of treatment that improve prostate cancer outcomes.