Genetics & Metabolism
Pediatric Genetics and Metabolism offers diagnosis, management, and genetic counseling for children and adults with disorders known or suspected to be inherited from a family member, resulting from a change in a person’s genetic code. Such disorders include birth defects, chromosomal abnormalities, unexplained mental retardation and inborn errors of metabolism. Our providers play a vital role with the State of North Carolina’s Newborn Screening Program, frequently identifying and treating disorders in newborn from across the state before the effects of a genetic disorder are irreversible. Our faculty are intentionally known for cutting-edge research and new treatments developed from clinical trials spanning decades.
The Mission of the Division of Genetics and Metabolism is to:
- Provide state of the art care and support to children and adults with genetic and inherited metabolic disorders
- Develop and implement innovative diagnostic tests and treatments for genetic and inherited metabolic disorders through cutting-edge research
- Educate students, clinicians, patients and their families as well as the wider community about genetics and genomics
GENETICS & METABOLISM NEWS
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Young Re-Elected to NIIMBL Technical Activities Committee
Sam Young, Jr., PhD, Roper Investigator, Professor of Pediatrics, and Director of the UNC Gene Therapy Center, has been elected to his second one-year term on the Technical Activities Committee (TAC) of the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL). NIIMBL is a public-private partnership dedicated to accelerating biopharmaceutical innovation, developing industry standards for more efficient manufacturing, and fostering a highly skilled biopharmaceutical workforce to strengthen U.S. competitiveness.
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Bobo, Burbank, Duncan and Patel Receive 2025 Junior Faculty Development Awards
Several pediatrics faculty were recently selected to receive UNC-Chapel Hill Junior Faculty Development Awards for 2025. The Junior Faculty Development Awards are funded by IBM and R. J. Reynolds Industries, Inc. This award grants $10,000 to support scholarly pursuits over one calendar year.
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Welcome New Genetic Counselor: Coltrane Beck-Chance, MS
Coltrane Beck-Chance joined Genetics and Metabolism on February 10, 2025. Mr. Beck-Chance received his Bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in December of 2019. He received his MS in Genetic Counseling from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 2024. Welcome!
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Bobo Receives ASGCT Career Development Award
Tierra Bobo, PhD, Assistant Professor in Pediatric Genetics and Metabolism and a researcher with the Gene Therapy Center, recently received an award by the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT). Her proposal for Viral Vector Development in the amount of $100,000 was accepted as a Career Development Award. Dr. Bobo will present the research funded through this award at the ASGCT 29th Annual Meeting, May 12-16, 2026 in Boston, MA. This is a exciting first step in the development of Dr. Bobo’s goals for an independent laboratory. Congratulations on this recognition of such hard work!