The Translational Team Science Award (TTSA) program supports the development of new interdisciplinary teams of basic science and clinical investigators at UNC School of Medicine. The program fosters collaborative, translational research that bridges basic and clinical disciplines and may include studies using human subjects, tissues, cellular systems, or animal models. These awards provide early planning support and initial funding to enable innovative team‑based research and to position investigators for future large‑scale interdisciplinary funding.
The UNC School of Medicine Office of Research administers the program and is pleased to announce the most recent awards to the following four teams:
Zibo Li, PhD (Professor, Department of Radiology; Biomedical Research Imaging Center) & Nima Kokabi, MD, FRCPC (Associate Professor, Department of Radiology; Interventional Oncology)
“A Transporter Targeted Radiotheranostic Platform for Precision Treatment of Glutamine Addicted Hepatocellular Carcinoma”
Erica Sparkenbaugh, PhD (Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine) & Mofiyinfoluwa Obadina, MD, MSCR (Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology)
“Hypoxemia‑Induced Platelet Activation in Sickle Cell Disease Pregnancy: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Targets”
Luther A. Bartelt, MD, DTM&H (Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases) & Adam Rosenthal, PhD (Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology)
“Phenotypic Heterogeneity During Prolonged Colonization with Highly Resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae Clinical Strains”
Janice Jin Hwang, MD, MHS (Associate Professor of Medicine; Chief, Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism), Uzay Emir, PhD (Associate Professor, Department of Radiology; Department of Biomedical Engineering), & Guorong Wu, PhD (Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry)
“Energy Allocation Between Brain and Periphery in Children With and Without Obesity”
Congratulations to the 2026 TTSA award recipients! These projects reflect the strength of team‑based, translational research and the program’s continued commitment to fostering innovative collaborations that address pressing health challenges.