Medical research highlights, December, 2024

Russell McCulloh, MD

The UNMC College of Medicine received grant and funding awards representing more than $5 million in new funding in October. Awards included:

Russell McCulloh, MD, pediatrics-hospitalists, received a grant of $614,872 from DHHS/NIH/NCMHD for “Mobile Health for Migrant Health (mHealth-4-Mhealth): Assessing the Effectiveness of Implementing an mHealth Program to Increase COVID-19 Testing and Treatment Among Rural Migrant Families.”

Palsamy Periyasamy, PhD, pharmacology and experimental neuroscience, received a grant of $513,978 from DHHS/NHI/NIDA for a study of epigenetic regulation of astrocyte-specific NLRP6 inflammasome and PANoptosis in HIV Tat and methamphetamine-mediated neuroinflammation.

Joshua Santarpia, PhD, pathology, microbiology and immunology, received a grant of $96,527 from National Strategic Research Institute for “Octopus,” fiscal year 2024.

Meghan Ramirez, pharmacology and experimental neuroscience, received a grant of $49,974 from DHHS/NHI/NINDS for a study on understanding the developmental impact of environmental risk factors on brain and cognitive systems vulnerable to Alzheimer’s disease in children.

Taylor Burke, pathology, microbiology and immunology, received a grant of $45,574 from DHHS/NHI/NIAID for a study on nitrogen metabolism of staphylococcus aureus.

Oleg Korzyukov, PhD, neurological sciences, received a grant of $31,979 from Creighton University for a study on bioelectrical markers of age-related neurodegenerative diseases derived from manifestations of central auditory processing.

Cyrus Desouza, MBBS, internal medicine-DEM, received a grant of $10,000 from University of California-San Francisco for a diabetes distress training program for diabetes specialty care.

Aleisha Nabower, MD, pediatrics-hospitalist, received a grant of $2,820 from the Council on Medical Student Education in Pediatrics for exploring the use of student chiefs across pediatric programs,

Industry-sponsored grants and contracts:

The following industry-sponsored grants and contracts were received.

Omar Abughanimeh, MBBS, internal medicine-oncology/hematology, received funding for a study of Ivonescimab combined with Chemotherapy vs. Pembrolizumab combined with chemotherapy for the first-line treatment of metastatic squamous non-small cell lung cancer and for a second study evaluate SGN-B6A compared with docetaxel in adult subjects with previously treated non-small cell lung cancer.

Dr. McCulloh received funding for support of the studies and procedures to be performed to support standardization of Teucer’s podocin RT-qPCR assay.

Howard Fox, MD, PhD, neurological sciences, received funding for the National NeuroHIV Tissue Consortium (NNTC) Data Coordinating Center.

Olga Taraschenko, MD, PhD, neurological sciences, received funding for a study of inhibitory interneurons (NRTX-1001) in rrug\x2resistant unilateral mesial temporal lobe epilepsy.

Christopher D’Angelo, MD, internal medicine-oncology/hematology, received funding for a study of the efficacy and safety of Glofitamab in combination with Polatuzumab Vedotin plus Rituximab, Cyclophosphamide, Doxorubicin and prednisone.

Scott Koepsell, MD, PhD, pathology, microbiology and immunology, received funding for support of the studies and procedures to be performed to support standardization of Teucer’s podocin RT-qPCR assay.

Ann Anderson Berry, MD, PhD, pediatrics-newborn medicine, received funding for “Optimizing Pharmacologic Treatment for Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome (OPTimize NOW).”

Scott Campbell, PhD, pathology, microbiology and immunology, received funding for FDA-CDRH Shield Knowledge Architecture.

Soonjo Hwang, MD, psychiatry, received funding for a Hippo T&C Inc.-Hwang Research consulting agreement.

Jesse Cox, MD, PhD, pathology, microbiology and immunology, received funding for developing and publishing a process to run a Wipe Test using AlloSeq products.