Research News
Researchers create a community resource referral program to address kidney health disparitiesDrs. Gaurav Dave, associate professor of medicine, and Abhijit V. Kshirsagar, Covington Distinguished Professor of Medicine, received a grant from the NIH National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to address structural racism to reduce kidney health disparities in rural North Carolina. North Carolina has the second largest rural population in the … Read more
Dr. Boyce Receives $4.4 Million to Lead a Malaria Intervention Project in Uganda Following Extreme Weather EventsThe NIH has awarded a multi-disciplinary team led by Ross Boyce, MD, MSc, a $4.4 million, five-year (R01) grant to evaluate the effectiveness of a chemoprevention effort designed to prevent malaria outbreaks after flooding, using a combination of interventions. Boyce is a member of the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases (IGHID), an Assistant … Read more
Five NC Institutions Collaborating to Advance Kidney, Urology, Hematology (KUH) ResearchRonald Falk, MD, Nan and Hugh Cullman Eminent Professor of Medicine at UNC, Anthony Atala, MD, Professor of Medicine at Wake Forest University and Thomas Ortel, MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine at Duke University, will lead an effort to cultivate a highly skilled cohort of people and resources to advance research in kidney, urology, and … Read more
Gut Microbiome Can Increase Risk, Severity of HIV, EBV DiseaseAngela Wahl, PhD, Balfour Sartor MD, and J. Victor Garcia, PhD, and colleagues created a germ-free mouse model to evaluate the role of the microbiome in the infection, replication, and pathogenesis of HIV and Epstein-Barr virus.
Study Shows Weight Loss Drug Reduces Cardiovascular Risk by 20% in Overweight, Obese AdultsA new study shows semaglutide 2.4 mg (Wegovy), a weekly injected prescription medication for overweight adults, may prevent major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) such as cardiovascular death, non-fatal heart attack or non-fatal stroke. Novo Nordisk released the results of the significant clinical trial called SELECT. The trail studied the effects of Wegovy on people with … Read more
Dr. Dellon Ushers in First FDA-Approved Medication for Eosinophilic EsophagitisEvan Dellon, MD, MPH, a professor of medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology and director of the Center for Esophageal Diseases and Swallowing, co-leads effort to approve an allergy drug, dupilumab, for the treatment in adults and adolescents with eosinophilic esophagitis. Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is an allergic condition of the esophagus that is … Read more
Using Collaboration to Fight a Tricky Tick-Borne DiseaseA Lone star tick next to forceps Alpha-Gal Syndrome, or AGS, is a recently identified tick-borne disease that triggers an allergy to red meat and other products made from mammals, including cheese, gelatin, and medications like heparin. Since its discovery in 2009, cases in the United States alone have risen from 24 to >40,000 people, … Read more
TARC Holds Fifth Annual “Research Day”Approximately 100 leading researchers and clinicians, research staff and trainees gathered recently to discuss innovative ways to advance research in arthritis, allergy, and autoimmune diseases. Additionally, attendees who couldn’t participate in person attended remotely. Of particular interest this year was keynote speaker and John B. Winfield, MD Visiting Scholar, Ali Ellebedy, PhD, Associate Professor of Pathology and … Read more
Dr. Seth A. Berkowitz earns Hettleman Prize for Artistic and Scholarly AchievementSeth Berkowitz, MD, MPH Seth A. Berkowitz, MD, MPH, an associate professor in the Division of General Medicine and Clinical Epidemiology in the Department of Medicine, is one of four UNC faculty members awarded the 2022 Phillip and Ruth Hettleman Prize for Artistic and Scholarly Achievement. The Hettleman Prizes were established in 1986 by … Read more
Two Popular Diabetes Drugs Outperform Two Others in Head-to-Head ComparisonDr. John Buse and colleagues complete first study comparing commonly used medications for type 2 diabetes Diabetes affects more than one out of every ten Americans and about one out of every three people in their lifetime. John Buse, MD, PhD Type 2 diabetes occurs when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin — a … Read more
Wahl Receives $3.2 Million to Study the Neurological Consequences of HIV InfectionAngela Wahl, PhD Angela Wahl, PhD, an assistant professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases in the Department of Medicine, and a member of the Institute for Global Health & Infectious Diseases (IGHID), has received a $3.2 million R01 award to study the role of microglia in HIV latency and persistence in the brain. Over … Read more
Study shows the positive effect of preventative therapy for malaria is mediated by gestational weight gain, influenced by intestinal pathogensAndreea Waltmann and the late Steve Meshnick. Malaria in pregnancy (MiP) is a major public health problem with substantial risks for mothers and their babies. The combination treatment sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP), given for intermittent preventive therapy of malaria in pregnancy (IPTp), is one of the few existing interventions that improve outcomes for both mother and baby, despite widespread … Read more