Announcements

NIH Funding Opportunity: BRAIN Initiative: Development and Validation of Novel Tools to Probe Cell-Specific and Circuit-Specific Processes in the Brain (R01 Clinical Trials Not Allowed)          RFA-MH-21-175          The purpose of this initiative is to encourage research that will develop and validate novel tools to facilitate the detailed analysis of complex circuits and provide insights into cellular interactions that underlie brain function.          The new tools and tech should inform and/or exploit cell-type and/or circuit-level specificity.          Plans for validating the utility of the tool/tech will be essential feature of a successful application.          Development of new genetic and non-genetic tools for delivering genes, proteins, and chemicals to cells of interest or approaches that are expected to target specific cell types and/or circuits in the nervous system with greater precision and sensitivity than currently established methods are encouraged.          Submission date: Sept 8th   LOI due: August 8th          Full Information: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-MH-21-175.html

Foundational Funding Opportunities: https://ctsi.wakehealth.edu/-/media/WakeForest/CTSI/Files/Funding-Opportunities/NIH-Funding-Opportunities.pdf

NIH Funding Opportunities: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/WeeklyIndexMobile.cfm

American Federation for Aging (AFAR) Research Funding Opportunities https://www.afar.org/funding-opportunities  

American Cancer Society Research Grant Funding Opportunities https://www.cancer.org/research/we-fund-cancer-research/apply-research-grant/grant-types.html  

American Heart Association Research Funding Opportunities https://professional.heart.org/professional/ResearchPrograms/ApplicationInformation/UCM_316909_Application-Information.jsp?uid=1193

Upcoming Events

BERD Lunch and Learn Date/Time:     Wednesday, May 5th (12:00 pm – 1:00 pm) Speaker:         Joseph Rigdon, PhD – Assistant Professor – PHS Biostatistics and Data Science Title:               “Multiple Imputation: Why, when and how to use MI in your research.” Registration:  https://redcap.wakehealth.edu/redcap/surveys/?s=JTYRHTJKHC

Recent Publications

Chan J,Yao W, Howard TD, Hawkins GA, Olivier M, Jorgensen MJ, Cheeseman IH, Cole SA, Cox LA. Efficiency of whole-exome sequencing in old world and new world primates using human capture reagents. J Med Primatol. 2021 Apr 19. [Online ahead of print] PMID: 33876458. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmp.12524 

Cilvik SN, Wesolowski SR, Anthony RV, Brown LD, Rozance PJ. Late gestation fetal hyperglucagonemia impairs placental function and results in diminished fetal protein accretion and decreased fetal growth. J Physiol. 2021 Apr 20. [Online ahead of print] PMID: 33878802. https://doi.org/10.1113/jp281288 

Wang H, Noordam R, Cade BE, Schwander K, Winkler TW, Lee J, Sung YJ, Bentley AR, Manning AK, Aschard H, Kilpelainen TO, Ilkov M, Brown MR, Horimoto AR, Richard M, Bartz TM, Vojinovic D, Lim E, Nierenberg JL, Liu Y, Chitrala K, Rankinen T, Musani SK, Franceschini N, Rauramaa R, Alver M, Zee PC, Harris SE, van der Most PJ, Nolte IM, Munroe PB, Palmer ND, et al. Multi-ancestry genome-wide gene-sleep interactions identify novel loci for blood pressure. Mol Psychiatry. 2021 Apr 15. [Online ahead of print] PMID: 33859359. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41380-021-01087-0 

Black-Schaffer WS, Robboy SJ, Gross DJ, Crawford JM, Johnson K, Austin M, Karcher DS, Johnson RL, Powell SZ, Sanfrancesco J, Cohen MB. Evidence-Based Alignment of Pathology Residency with Practice II: Findings and Implications. Acad Pathol. 2021 Apr 7;8:23742895211002816. (eCollection Jan-Dec 2021). PMCID: PMC8040604. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmc8040604/ 

Karere GM, Cox LA, Bishop AC, South AM, Shaltout HA, Mercado-Deane M-G, Cuda S. Sex Differences in miRNA Expression and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in Hispanic Adolescents with Obesity. J Pediatr. 2021 Apr 5;S0022-3476(21)00319-X. [Online ahead of print]. PMID: 33831442. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2021.03.070 7 

Member News

Congratulations to Kip and Erika Zimmerman on the birth of their new baby boy John Paul (J.P.) Zimmerman. Born April 29th – weighing in at 8lbs 10oz.

Congratulations to the recipients of the Heart and Circulatory Physiology 2020 Impact Award “COVID-19, ACE2, and the cardiovascular consequences” Recipients included Dr. Mark C. Chappell, Dr. Andrew South, Dr. Debra I Diz.

CPM Faculty Member Highlights

Dr. Soker received his PhD from the Technion-Israel Institute for Technology, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at the Children’s Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School. He was then recruited to the Laboratory for Tissue Engineering and Cellular Therapies as Assistant Professor of Surgery at the Harvard Medical School. 

Research Interests: Dr. Soker’s research focuses on multiple aspects of regenerative medicine including identification of new sources of cells and scaffolds for tissue engineering, tissue neovascularization and real-time imaging technologies. Some of his research projects have been translated into clinical applications in patients including the use of cells, biomaterials and bioengineered tissues to repair muscles, skin wounds and damages urological tissues. In parallel, Dr. Soker has been making bioengineered tissue models of human development and disease. This technology enables screening of existing drugs on a personalized basis and development of new drugs and test them on cells derived from individual patients. Based his work, a new Wake Forest Organoid Research Center (WFORCE) was recently established, on which he serves as the scientific director.  

Other Scientific Activities: During his scientific career, Dr. Soker won numerous prizes for his research projects and publications and had obtained funding for his research from different sources including NIH (NCI, NIBIB, etc.), DoD, the state of North Carolina, private foundations and industry. Dr. Soker is an inventor of patents in the area of regenerative medicine and regenerative medicine. Some served as the foundation for biotech companies he founded along with others at WFIRM and others have been licensed to companies. Links: ShaySoker PhD https://school.wakehealth.edu/Faculty/S/Shay-Soker WFIRM https://school.wakehealth.edu/Research/Institutes-and-Centers/Wake-Forest-Institute-for-Regenerative-Medicine WFORCE https://school.wakehealth.edu/Research/Institutes-and-Centers/Wake-Forest-Institute-for-Regenerative-Medicine/Research/WFORCE