CICATS Announces 2013 Pilot Study Awardees

Eight proposals were selected for funding following a detailed peer review by a panel of experts.

CICATS_logoThe Connecticut Institute for Clinical and Translational Science (CICATS) has announced its award recipients of the 2013 CICATS Pilot Study. Over 50 applications were received and 8 proposals were selected for funding following a detailed peer review by a panel of experts.

The review criteria included significance of the project; feasibility; potential value to clinical and translation research; innovation; collaborative research; and overall scientific merit. Each awardee will receive $50,000 to fund their proposed projects.

Biree Andemariam, M.D., UConn Health Center
“Identification of patient-specific vascular adhesion profiles and therapeutic signatures in sickle cell disease”
Collaborators:
– Hector Aguila, Ph.D., UConn Health Center
– George Lykotrafitis, Ph.D., UConn Health Center
– William Zempsky, M.D., Connecticut Children’s Medical Center

Christopher D. Heinen, Ph.D., UConn Health Center
“Deterring pathogenic significance of germline mismatch repair gene variants”
Collaborators:
– Robin Schwartz, M.S., C.G.C., UConn Health Center
– Jennifer Stroop, M.S., C.G.C., UConn Health Center

Dmitry M. Korzhnev, Ph.D., UConn Health Center
“Translesion Synthesis DNA Polymerases as Targets for Anti-Cancer Drug Design”
Collaborator:
– Matthew K. Hadden, Ph.D., UConn

Xiuling Lu, Ph.D., UConn
“Radionuclide therapy of Metastatic Ovarian Cancer with Mesoporous Nanoparticles: Translation of Results in Animal Models to Humans”
Collaborators:
– Molly A. Brewer, D.V.M., M.D., M.S., UConn Health Center
– Andrew Salner, M.D., Hartford Hospital
– Joel Sorosky, M.D., FACOG, Hartford Hospital

Renee Manworren, Ph.D., APRN, PCNS-BC, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center
“Pilot study to advance personalized medicine in pediatrics: Identification of children and adolescents at risk for post-operative pain and adverse analgesic effects”
Collaborators:
– Gualberto Ruaño, M.D., Ph.D., Connecticut Children’s Medical Center
– Richard Seip, Ph.D., Hartford Hospital

John A. Taylor, M.D., M.S., UConn Health Center
“L-Selection as a marker of metastatic potential in invasive bladder cancer”
Collaborators:
– James F. Rusling, Ph.D., UConn
– Dharamainder Choudhary, Ph.D., UConn Health Center
– Poornima Hedge, M.D., UConn Health Center

Tulio A. Valdez, M.D., Connecticut Children’s Medical Center
“Multi-wavelength video-otoscopy for the Diagnosis of Otitis Media”
Collaborators:
– Donald Peterson, Ph.D., UConn Health Center/UConn
– Jinbo Bi, Ph.D., M.Sc., UConn

Andrew Winokur, M.D., Ph.D., UConn Health Center
“Development and Assessment of a sublingual Tablet Preparation of Thyrotropin Releasing Hormone to Enable New Therapeutic Applications”
Collaborators:
– Brian J. Aneskievich, Ph.D., UConn
– Jayesh Kamath, M.D., Ph.D., UConn Health Center
– Robin H. Bogner, Ph.D., UConn

Visit the Pilot and Collaborative Translational and Clinical Studies Core page for information about the CICATS pilot program.