Brooke Matson, Jeremy Meier, Brittany Raffa, and Shivani Sud will receive support from the UNC School of Medicine Physician Scientists Training Program to cultivate their careers as translational clinical scientists.
As part of the Forward Together Strategic Plan, the UNC School of Medicine Physician Scientist Training Program (PSTP) supports a small number of clinicians committed to translating research findings to advance the practice of medicine in addition to providing clinical care and teaching. PSTP is a pipeline to recruit, train, and retain promising individuals and provide them with support and mentorship to cultivate their research programs.
The PSTP supports physician scientists at both the resident or fellowship level and the early stage faculty level. In this fifth round of awards, one award was given at the resident / fellowship level to Brooke Matson, MD, PhD, in the Department of Medicine. She will receive $35,000 in salary support of her research. Jeremy Meier, MD, PhD, from the Department of Medicine, Brittany Raffa, MD, from the Department of Pediatrics, and Shivani Sud, MD, from the Department of Radiation Oncology will each receive support at the early-stage faculty level. Each will receive $55,000 in salary support and $25,000 in support of their research project.
“This program has continued to receive nominations of outstanding young physician scientists from across a wide span of clinical disciplines. This year, our advisory committee made up of physician scientists from ten clinical departments in the School of Medicine, reviewed nominations at the fellowship and faculty level from five clinical departments, all presenting promising research project across a diverse range of clinical and scientific interests” said Joseph (Alex) Duncan, MD, PhD, professor of medicine and director of the UNC School of Medicine Physician Scientists Training Program. “Fellow trainees from the initial cohorts of this program have successfully transitioned from fellowship to faculty positions, fulfilling the program goal of growing our own physician scientist work force. Our faculty awardees have also continued to have success in obtaining new research awards and publishing impactful scientific works. We are grateful that this strategic SOM program is available to support this year’s cohort of awardees at this critical stage of their career development.”
Matson’s research will focus on the pathophysiology of diabetes and obesity, specifically understanding the relationship of plasma glucose, incretin hormones and brain glucose to better design preventions and treatments.
Meier, an assistant professor in the division of hematology and former SOM PSTP fellow awardee, is interested in how extracellular signals in the tumor microenvironment regulate the differentiation and function of immune cells. The primary goal of the research is to uncover new therapeutic targets to improve the long-term effectiveness of cellular therapeutics, such as CAR-T therapy, to treat patients.
Raffa is an assistant professor of general pediatrics and adolescent medicine and her research serves to inform policy that will improve population health outcomes. Her first of its kind project is focused on examining the effect of extended Medicaid postpartum coverage on mothers and infants in North Carolina which has major implications for policy making at the state and national level.
Sud is an assistant professor of radiation oncology with a research focus on personalized cancer therapy using biomarkers and other interventions to mitigate toxicity from cancer-directed therapies. Her research project will examine the impact of remodeling the gut metabolome and microbiome on the dose and tolerance of radiation therapy in patients.
More information on the SOM PSTP program can be found on the website.