UAMS Announces Second Class of Prestigious KL2 Scholars
| LITTLE ROCK – The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Center for Clinical and Translational Research (CCTR) has named its second class of prestigious KL2 Career Development Award scholars.
Dennis Kuo, M.D., assistant professor of pediatrics, and Sundararaman Swaminathan, M.D., assistant professor of internal medicine, were awarded a total of nearly $200,000 to ensure two years of protected time to develop a research program and receive appropriate mentoring and training.
Kuo, who seeks to evaluate the family needs and clinical resource use of children with medical complexity, will be mentored by UAMS professors Mary E. Aitken, M.D., and Patrick H. Casey, M.D. Swaminathan, who proposes to evaluate a novel mechanism in the pathogenesis of diabetes, will be mentored by Sudhir Shah, M.D.
“These innovative projects are exactly the kinds of things that the Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) is designed to assist with and develop,” said Curtis Lowery, M.D., principal investigator for the CCTR. “We are looking to speed the path to improving the health of individuals and communities. Developing and supporting researchers like Dr. Kuo and Dr. Swaminathan is one component of what the CCTR is all about.”
The CCTR was created in July 2009 when UAMS was awarded $19.9 million by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to join an exclusive group of medical institutions nationwide. The Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) from the National Center for Research Resources of the NIH is a highly sought-after grant among institutions that aim to translate basic science discoveries into speedier treatments and cures for patients. UAMS became one of just 46 institutions in the country to join the coalition. Today there are just 55 institutions in the coalition.
As a program of the CTSA and its effort to speed basic research into clinical use, the KL2 Awards provide mentored research training for Ph.D.s or professional doctorates that are committed to academic careers in clinical or translational research. Through the program, financial support and benefits are provided for postdoctoral scholars, fellows and junior faculty to quickly advance their research. The CCTR’s goal is to have two awardees per year, with five to six junior faculty members going through the program at a time.
The KL2 program continues to support Wang “Steve” Cheung, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Pathology, and Holly Felix, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, as they continue their research that began when they were awarded UAMS’ first-ever KL2 Career Development Awards in February 2010.
UAMS is the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Related Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a 540,000-square-foot hospital; a statewide network of regional centers; and six institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, the Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, the Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy, the Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, the Psychiatric Research Institute and the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging. UAMS has 2,775 students and 748 medical residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 10,000 employees, including nearly 1,150 physicians who provide medical care to patients at UAMS, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and UAMS’ Area Health Education Centers throughout the state. Visit www.uams.edu or uamshealth.com.