Pilot Project Recipients
Pilot Project Awardee Testimonials
"This program is very useful for fostering new collaboration among peers and also has been helpful to start a new research project under that collaboration."
"I really appreciate the pilot support from the ACTSI program, it is important to bring new and young investigators into the Translational and Clinical Research Programs. The innovative support of discovery and development and the collaborative partners will help to rapidly translate scientific discoveries and new technology to impact the patient care of the Atlanta community."
Supported studies include, but are not limited to, research conducted with clinical subjects (or on material of clinical origin such as tissues, specimens and cognitive phenomena) for which the investigators directly interact with the subjects. Patient-oriented research may involve: 1) mechanisms of human disease, 2) therapeutic interventions, 3) clinical trials or 4) development of new technologies, and 5) epidemiological, behavioral, outcomes or health services research.
Round #1 URC (07/07). Five $30,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #2 MSM (11/07). Three additional $30,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #3 URC (12/07). Seven $30,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #4 URC (04/08). Six $30,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #5 (05/08)Research Technologies/CBDC . Four $25,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #6 GTEC (10/08). Five $100,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #7 URC (12/08). Nine $30,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #8 URC (05/09). Six $30,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #9 MSM (06/09). Two $50,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #10 GTEC (07/09). Three $100,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #11 GTEC (07/09). Three $100,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #12 URC (12/09). Seven $30,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #13 URC (05/10). Five $29,000 one-year awards funded.
Research Technologies Round #14 (05/10). Three $50,000 one-year awards funded.
Research Technologies Round #15 (06/10). One $37,000 one-year award funded.
Round #16 ADRC (05/10). One $20,000 one-year award funded.
Round #17 MSM (06/10). Two $50,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #18 GTEC (07/10). Three one-year awards totaling $261,388 funded.
Round #19 Dystonia Research (08/10). One $25,000 one-year award funded.
Round #20 Parkinson's Disease Research (12/10). One $35,000 one-year award funded.
Round #21 MSM (01/11). One $50,000 award funded.
Round #22 ADRC (02/11). One $24,000 one-year award funded.
Round #23 (02/11)Research Technologies/Coulter . Two one-year awards totaling $247,000 funded.
Round #24 URC (03/11). Twelve $30,000 awards funded.
Round #25 MSM (09/11). Two $50,000 awards funded.
Round #26 Winship (10/11). Two $75,000 awards funded.
Round #27 Regenerative Medicine (09/11). Three $100,000 awards and three $50,000 awards funded.
Round #28 Health Innovation Program (12/11). Two $25,000 awards funded.
Round #29 Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (05/12). One $20,000 award funded.
Round #30 Parkinson's Disease Research (04/12). One $35,000 one-year award funded.
Round #31 URC (05/12). Eleven $29,000-30,000 one-year awards funded.
Round #32 Health Innovations Program (05/12). Two $25,000 one-year awards funded.
URC Round #1 (07/07). Five $30,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory University SOM (among 19 submitted applications)
Fernando Holguin, MD (Medicine, Pulmonary/Critical Care), Airway Adipokines and the Alveolar Macrophage
Debra Houry, MD (Emergency Medicine), Early Intervention Following Severe Trauma (NIH Funded)
Claudia Testa, MD (Neurology), Essential Tremor Disease Mechanisms
Morehouse SOM (among 5 submitted applications)
Yuan-Xiang Meng, MD, PhD, MSCR (Family Medicine), Association of Variants in SLC308A8 and TCF7L2 Genes with Insulin Secretion in Overweight/Obese African Americans
Lilly Cheng Immergluck, MD (Pediatrics), Community Associated MRSA in Children: Surveillance and Treatment Outcomes in the Ambulatory Setting
MSM Round #2 (11/07). Three additional $30,000 one-year awards funded:
Morehouse SOM (among 5 completed applications)
Aurelian Bidulescu, MD, PhD, MPH (Community Health and Preventive Medicine), Left Ventricular Hypertrophy and Heart Failure in Obese African Americans: Developing Predictive Adipokine Biomarkers
Cinnamon Bradley, MD (Internal Medicine), Vitamin D Metabolite Loss into Urine Limits Optimization of Vitamin D Status during Vitamin D Supplementation
Xuebiao Yao, PhD (Physiology/Medicine), Multi-color Quantum Dot Imaging for Predicting Breast Cancer Outcome and Designing Personalized Medicine
URC Round #3 (12/07). Seven $30,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory University SOM (among 72 submitted applications)
Lora Bean, PhD (Genetics), Imprinting Establishment in Down Syndrome
Michael Compton, MD, MPH (Psychiatry), Recruiting Urban, Low-Income, African American Adolescents to Participate in Research
Marian Evatt, MD (Neurology), Vitamin D Repletion for Optimal Health in Patients with Parkinson’s Disease
Greg Martin, MD (Pulmonology), Characterization of Endothelial Progenitor Cells in Clinical Sepsis: A Novel Prognostic Strategy
Seth Norrholm, PhD (Psychiatry), Conditioned Fear Extinction in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Arlene Stecenko, MD (Pediatrics), Epidemiology of Epstein-Barr Virus in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis
Paul Terry, PhD (Epidemiology), Effects of Supplemental Antioxidants on Biomarkers of Oxidative Stress and Inflammation
URC Round #4 (04/08). Six $30,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory SOM and Georgia Tech (from 71 submitted applications)
Beth Shaz, MD (Pathology and Laboratory Medicine), Investigating the Pathophysiology of Early Trauma Induced Coagulopathy
Nana Gletsu Miller, PhD (Surgery), Human Visceral Adipose Tissue and Mechanisms Affecting Insulin Action
Qiang Cai, MD, PhD (Digestive Diseases), Intradudodenal Acid Infusion for Facilitation of Cannulation of the Dorsal Pancreatic Duct at Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatogram
Linda Cendales, MD (Surgery), Hand Transplantation as a Therapy for Limb Loss
Anne Fitzpatrick, PhD (Pediatrics), Role of TGF Beta-Induced Alveolar Macrophage Dysfunction in Poorly Controlled Asthma
Page Pennell, MD (Neurology), Neuroactive Steroids and Seizure Control during Pregnancy in Women with Epilepsy (NINDS, NIH Funded)
Research Technologies/CBDC Round #5 (05/08). Four $25,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory SOM, MSM, and Georgia Tech (from nine submitted applications)
Ifor Williams, MD, PhD (Emory Pathology and Laboratory Medicine), High throughput screening for small molecule inhibitors of CC chemokine receptor 6 (CCR6)
Michelle LaPlaca, PhD (Joint GT/Emory Department of Biomedical Engineering), A new high-throughput traumatic neural injury system
Xiaodong Cheng, PhD (Emory Biochemistry), Developing a new fluorescence-based assay for histone demethylation
Xuebiao Yao, PhD (MSM Physiology), Chemical biological study of BubR1 signaling pathway in mitosis
GTEC Round #6 (10/08). Five $100,000 one-year awards funded:
Georgia Tech/Emory Center (GTEC) for the Engineering of Living Tissues (from 7 submitted applications)
Todd McDevitt, PhD (Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech and Emory University), Stem Cell-Mediated Ischemia Repair
Gang Bao, PhD (Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech and Emory University), Developing Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells for Cardiovascular Regenerative Medicine
Young-sup Yoon, MD, PhD (Cardiology, Emory University), Patient-derived Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells, Endothelial Differentiation and Vascular Regeneration
Andrés Garcia, PhD (Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Tech), Dynamic Anti-Inflammatory Biomaterials
Stephen Traynelis, PhD (Pharmacology, Emory University), The Role of NMDA Receptors in Motor Learning in Humans Recovering from Stroke and Brain Injury
URC Round #7 (12/08). Nine $30,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory University SOM (among 15 submitted applications)
Anthony Chan, DVM, PhD (Genetics & Molecular Medicine, Emory University), Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells of Rhesus Monkey
Haiying Cheng, PhD (Yerkes - Neuroscience, Emory University), Innovative Physiological Imaging technology and its Application to Retinal Degeneration
William Manson, MD (Emergency Medicine, Emory University), Emergency Physician-Performed Thoracic Ultrasound Rapidly Identifies CHF
Rita Nahta, PhD (Pharmacology), Modulation of BRACI by Curcumin in Triple Negative Breast Cancer
Charles D. Searles, Jr., MD (Cardiology), MicroRNAs and Regulation of Endothelial Genes in Response to Shear Stress
Haimanot Wasse, MD, MPH (Nephrology), Impact of Vitamin D on Arteriovenous Fistula Maturation in ESRD Patients
Elizabeth Wright, PhD (Pediatrics), Investigation of HIV-1 Assembly by Cryo-EM and Fluorescence Microscopy
Tianwei Yu, PhD (Rollins School of Public Health, Biostatistics), Developing Bioinformatics Tools for Large Scale LC-MS Data
Maziar Zafari, MD, PhD (Cardiology), Human Nox I Promoter Polymorphisms are Associated with CAD and MI
URC Round #8 (05/09). Six $30,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory SOM (from 69 submitted applications)
Abhinav Goyal, MD, MHS (Public Health, Epidemiology), Achievement and Knowledge of Vascular Risk Factor Goals in Type 1 Diabetes
Baowei Fei, PhD, EngD (Radiology), Motion correction and quantitative image analysis for kidney MR imaging
Kreton Mavromatis, MD (Medicine, Cardiology), HIV and Endothelial Progenitor Cells
Martin Moore, PhD (Infectious Diseases), Respiratory Syncytial Virus Strains: Impact on Disease and Immunity
Nadine Rouphael, MD (Medicine, Infectious Diseases), Correlation Between Human Innate and Adaptive Immune Responses to T Cell Independent and Dependent Meningococcal Vaccines
Habib Samady, MD (Medicine, Cardiology), Evaluation of Ischemic Postconditioning in Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction
MSM Round #9 (06/09). Two $50,000 one-year awards funded:
Morehouse SOM (among 9 completed applications)
Iris Buchanan, MD, MSc (Pediatrics), Nalbuphine versus Morphine: A Randomized Double Blind Pilot Study Comparing the Rates of Acute Chest Syndrome (ACS) and Efficacy in Pain Control for Sickle Cell Vaso-occulusive Crisis (VOC)
Lilly Immergluck, MD (Pediatrics), Community Associated MRSA in Children- Defining the Virulent Factors which Link MRSA Colonization and Recurrence of Infection
GTEC Round #10 (07/09). Three $100,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory SOM and Georgia Tech (from 5 submitted applications)
Andres J. Garcia, PhD, MSE, (Mechanical Engineering) Dynamic Anti-Inflammatory Biomaterials
Todd C. McDevitt, PhD, (Biomedical Engineering) Stem Cell-mediated Ischemia Repair (continuation)
Young-sup Yoon, MD, PhD, (Cardiology) Patient-derived Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells, Endothelial Differentation...
GTEC Round #11 (07/09). Three $100,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory SOM (from 8 submitted applications)
Robert Gross, MD, PhD, (Neurosurgery) C3 transferase gene therapy to improve regeneration and recovery after injury and degeneration of the CNS
Susan A. Safley PhD, PhD, (Surgery) A stem cell-based approach to enhance performance of islet cell transplantation
Stephen Traynelis, PhD, (Pharmacology) Role of NMDA receptors in motor learning in humans recovering from stroke and brain injury
URC Round #12 (12/09). Seven $30,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory SOM (from 61 submitted applications)
Lisa C. Flowers, MD, (Medicine, OBGYN) A Phase I Trial on the Safety and PK of Curcumin in Pap Test Negative Women
Elvira Gosmanova, MD (Medicine, Nephrology) Hemodialysis and Oxidative Susceptibility of Lipoproteins Study
Taylor Harrison, MD (Medicine, Neurology) Nutritional & Genetic Risk Factors for Polyneuropathy in HIV (+) South Africans
Michael Lloyd, MD (Medicine, Cardiology) Real Time Intracardiac Impedograms of Left Ventricular Leads to Locate Sites of Mechanical Delay in Cardiac Resynchronization
Ramkumar Menon, PhD (Medicine, Epidemiology, OBGYN) Isoprostanes: Alternate Mediators of Labor Process
Lesley Miller, MD (Medicine, General Medicine) Cutting Losses: Low Liver Clinic Appointment Adherence and Strategies to Improve Patient Attendance
Anne Dunlop, MD, MPH (Preventative Medicine) Exploration of Nutritional Risks for Spontaneous Preterm Birth for Black and White Women
URC Round #13 (05/10). Five $29,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory SOM (from 39 submitted applications)
Felicia Goldstein, PhD (Neurology) Racial Disparities in Assessment of Instrumental Activities of Daily Living
Hinh Ly, PhD (Pathology) Characterization of Cellular Determinants for in vitro XMRV Infection
Ross Molinaro, PhD (Pathology) Characterization of Xenotropic Murine Leukemia Virus-related Virus
Nawazish Naqvi, PhD (Cardiology) In vivo Expansion of Cardiac Stem Cells for Cardiomyogenesis
Xiaodong Zhang, PhD (Radiology) Tissue Fate Evaluation of Ischemic Stroke with High-Resolution MRI at 3T
Research Technologies Round #14 (05/10). Three $50,000 one-year awards funded:
Emory SOM and Georgia Tech (from 8 submitted applications)
John Oshinski, PhD (Radiology, Biomedical Engineering), A Dual-labeled Magnetic-Optical Imaging Probe for M2 Macrophages
Anthony Chan, PhD (Human Genetics), Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Approach for Evaluating Therapeutic Impact of shRNA in Huntington's Disease
Leonard Howell, PhD (Emory Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences), Resting State and Cue-Induced Functional Brain Activity Following Cocaine Use and Extinction Therapy in Nonhuman Primates
Research Technologies Round #15 (06/10). One $37,000 one-year award funded:
Emory SOM (from one submitted application)
Raymond Dingledine, PhD (Emory Pharmacology), A novel strategy for preventing progression of epilepsy
ADRC Round #16 (05/10). One $20,000 one-year award funded:
Emory SOM (from 6 submitted applications)
Thomas Wingo, MD (Medicine, Neurology) Rare Variants in Early-onset Alzheimer's Disease
MSM Round #17 (06/10). Two $50,000 one-year awards funded:
MSM (from 16 submitted applications)
Jiali Ye, PhD (Community Health and Preventive Medicine) Feasibility and Efficacy of Telepsychiatry for non-English Speaking Korean Immigrants in Atlanta
Morris Benveniste, PhD (Neuroscience) The Effects of D-Cycloserine of Aynaptic Transmission and Plasticity in the Cerebellum: A Model for Improving Motor Learning Outcome after Stroke
GTEC Round #18 (07/10). Three one-year awards totaling $261,388 funded:
Emory SOM and Georgia Tech (from 10 submitted applications)
Robert Gross, MD, PhD, (Neurosurgery) C3 Transferase Gene Therapy for Improving Regeneration and Recovery following CNS Injury
Collin Weber, MD (Surgery) Engineering Autologous Cell Therapy for Diabetes
Edmund Waller, MD, PhD (Hematology / Medical Oncology) Regulating Immune Reconstitution Through Graft Engineering Donor Dendritic Cells
Dystonia Research Round #19 (08/10). One $25,000 one-year award funded:
Emory University SOM (among 4 submitted applications)
Michael M. Johns, MD (Otolaryngology) Autoimmune, Neurologic, and Psychiatric Disease in the Focal Dystonias
Parkinson's Disease Research Round #20 (12/10). One $35,000 one-year award funded:
Emory University SOM (among 30 submitted applications)
Jeremy M. Boss, PhD (Microbiology and Immunology) Molecular Basis for PARK18 Association with Parkinson’s Disease
MSM Round #21 (01/11). One $50,000 award funded:
MSM (from 16 submitted applications)
Robert Meller, DPhil, (Neuroscience), Reprogramming human fibroblasts
ADRC Round #22 (02/11). One $24,000 one-year award funded:
Georgia Tech (among seven submitted applications)
Yi-Luen Ellen Do, PhD (Design Computing, Architecture), iMC System: intelligent mini-cog test for mild cognitive impairment screening
Research Technologies/Coulter Round #23 (02/11). Two one-year awards totaling $247,000 funded:
Emory SOM and Georgia Tech (among 14 submitted applications)
Diego Martin, MD PhD (Emory Radiology), The MRI Virtual Liver Biopsy - Chronic Liver Disease Fibrosis Measurement
John Oshinski, PhD (Emory Biomedical Engineering), An Imaging-Based Method to Plan Cardiac Pacemaker Lead Placement
URC Round #24 (03/11). Twelve $30,000 awards funded:
Emory (from 92 applications)
Allison Ross, MD (SOM, Pediatrics), Establishing Optimal Vitamin D Repletion Strategies in HIV-Infected Children and Young Adults: a Pilot Study
Claudia Testa, MD, PhD (SOM, Neurology), Neurological complications in classic galactosemia
Donna Session, MD (SOM, Gynecology and Obstetrics), Racial Differences in the expression of cyclin E in endometrial cancer
Eun Seok Cha (SON, endocrinology and metabolism), Preventing Type 2 Diabetes in Young Adults: A pilot descriptive study
Ioannis Sechopoulos, PhD (SOM, Radiology), Spectral Reconstruction: A New Approach to Tomographic Breast Imaging
Jorge Vidal, (RSPH, infectious diseases), Expression of S. pneumoniae virulence genes during human disease
Wilbur Lam, MD, PhD, (SOM, Pediatrics), Clinical assessment of a Smartphone otoscope
Lisa Merck, MD, (SOM, Emergency Medicine), Effect of Informed Consent on Emergency Department Utilization of Computed Tomography
Qi Long, PhD, (RSPH, Biostatistics & Bioinformatics), Robust Prediction Models for Cancer Risk and Prognosis Using High-dimensional Data and Pathway Information
Pengbo Liu, PhD, (RSPH, infectious disease), Association between Genetic and Immunological Protection to Pediatric NoV Infection
Rani Singh, PhD, (SOM, Human Genetics), The ability of Kuvan(R) (sapropterin dihydrochloride) to prevent meal-induced lipid peroxidation and endothelial dysfunction in patients with phenylketonuria: a pilot study
Shaojin You, MD, PhD (SOM, Pathology & Laboratory Medicine), Membrane Progesterone Receptor Alpha and its Potential as a Predictive Marker for Breast Cancer
MSM Round #25 (09/11). Two $50,000 awards funded:
(from 26 applications submitted)
Roger P. Simon, MD (Stroke, Neurology, Neurobiology), Biomarkers in AA Stroke Patients at Grady
Alec J. Davidson, PhD (Neurobiology, Immunology), Effects of Circadian Disruption on Inflammatory Responses in Humans
Winship Round #26 (10/11). Two $75,000 awards funded:
(from 17 applications submitted)
Edmund Waller, MD, PhD (Emory SOM Hematology, Oncology), Enhancing donor T-cell function through graft engineering in simian bone marrow transplantation
Mao Hui, MD (Emory SOM Radiology), Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Detection of Oncometabolite 2-HG for IDH Mutations in Brain Tumor Patients
Regenerative Medicine Round #27 (09/11). Three $100,000 awards and three $50,000 awards funded:
Emory SOM and Georgia Tech (from 16 applications submitted)
Subra Kugathasan, MD (Emory SOM Pediatrics), A Phase 1 Clinical Trial of Autologous Mesenchymal Stromal Cells in Crohn’s Disease
Michelle LaPlaca, PhD (Emory/Georgia Tech, BME), The Effect of Oxidative Stress Protection on Neuroinflammation and Neurogenesis following Traumatic Brain Injury
Arshed A. Quyyumi, PhD (Emory SOM Cardiology), CD31+ mononuclear cell therapy in Peripheral Arterial Disease and Critical Limb Ischemia: A Phase I Randomized Study
Young-sup Yoon, MD, PhD (Emory SOM Cardiology), Direct reprogramming of somatic cells into endothelial cells and their therapeutic application
Chong Hyun Shin, PhD (Georgia Tech), Mechanisms of Hepatopancreatic Regeneration and Reprogramming in the Zebrafish Model System
Johnna Temenoff, PhD (Georgia Tech), Biomaterials-based Strategies to Modulate Cathepsin Activity and Promote Healing of Tendon Overuse Injuries
Health Innovation Program Round #28 (12/11). Two $25,000 awards funded:
(from 22 applications submitted)
Larry J. Anderson, MD (Emory SOM, Pediatrics: Infectious Disease), Validation of a device to diagnose pneumonia from coughed droplets
Ayanna M. Howard, PhD (Georgia Tech, Electrical and Computer Engineering), VR-in-a-Box: Surgical Simulator-Supplementing Surgical training for medical students and residents using a low-cost virtual reality simulator with real-time haptic feedback
Alzheimer's Disease Research Center #29 (05/12). One $20,000 award funded:
(from 19 letters of intent, 8 applicants were invited to submit)
Minoru Shinohara, PhD (Georgia Tech, Bioengineering and IGERT [Hybrid Neural Microsystems]), Norepinephrine release with exercise and memory function in elderly adults
Parkinson's Disease Research Round #30 (04/12). One $35,000 one-year award funded:
(from 19 applications submitted)
Madeleine Hackney, PhD (Emory University, Geriatrics), Mechanisms of Balance Improvement during Parkinson's Disease Rehabilitation
URC Round #31 (05/12). Eleven $29,000-$30,000 one-year awards funded:
(from 27 applications submitted)
Andreas Kalogeropoulos, MD (Emory University, SOM, Cardiology), Right Ventricular Failure After Implantation of Left Ventricular Assist Devices
Anne Fitzpatrick, PhD (Emory University, SOM, Pediatrics), Sulfur Amino Acid Bioavailability in Children with Severe Asthma
Hyder A. Jinnah, MD, PhD (Emory University, SOM, Neurology), Functional Imaging in Cervical Dystonia
Jian Kang, PhD (Emory University, SPH, Biostatistics & Bioinformatics), Analysis of Ultra High-Dimensional Data in Imaging Genetics Studies
Faisal Khosa, MD (Emory University, SOM, Radiology), Femoral Artery Plaque using the 3-point Dixon MRI Technique
Amita Manatunga, PhD (Emory University, SPH, Biostatistics & Bioinformatics), Methods Developments for Evaluating and Development of Instruments in Clinical Studies
Jonathon Nye, PhD (Emory University, SOM, Radiology), Kinetic Modeling of Norepinephrine Transporter Availability in PTSD
Mirko Paiardini, PhD (Emory University, SOM, Microbiology & Immunology), Central Memory DC4T Cell Infection in AIDS Pathogenesis
Jeanie Park, MD (Emory University, SOM, Medicine), Mechanisms of Sympathetic Overactivity in Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Thomas Wingo, MD (Emory University, SOM, Neurology), Finding Autosomal Recessive Causes of Early-onset Alzheimer's Disease
Hao Wu, PhD (Emory University, SPH, Biostatistics & Bioinformatics), Statistical Methods for Data Integration in Genetic Association Studies
Health Innovations Program Round #32 (05/12). Two $25,000 one-year awards funded:
(from 14 submitted applications)
Arun Mohan, MD (Emory University, SOM, Medicine), DiaSys: Computerized Decision Support to Improve Diabetes Management in Primary Care
Sandra Dunbar, PhD (Emory University, School of Nursing),
A Preliminary Test of iHealthHome for Improving Outcomes in Heart Failure Patients with Diabetes