As part of its mission the UAB NSC offers pilot/feasibility grants awarded annually on a competitive basis to scientists with research focus on aging.
Current Awardees
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Robert Mankowski, Ph.D. & Peter Morris, M.D.
Project: "Senescence as a link to a chronic bioenergetic dysfunction in the critical illness-induced physical function loss and the effect of age"Associate Professor, UAB Medicine- Gerontology, Geriatrics, and Palliative Care (Mankowski) and Professor, UAB Medicine-Pulmonary, Allergy & Critical Care (Morris)
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Mohamed Khass, Ph.D.
Project: "The influence of progenitor B cell product, λ5 on Mesenchymal stem cell aging and fate determination"Assistant Professor, UAB School of Dentistry, Department of Orthodontics
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Christopher Wiley, Ph.D.
Project: "Assessment of cell-free mitochondrial DNA in CALERIE study participants"Scientist II/Assistant Professor, Tufts University, Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging
Previous Awardees
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Year 9
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Victoria Gibbs, Ph.D.
Project: “Evaluating the freshwater crustacean, Daphnia pulex, as an alternative, short-lived animal model of healthspan and aging”Associate Professor, UAB Department of Clinical and Diagnostic Science
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Melissa Harris, Ph.D.
Project: “Investigating the potential of the small molecule RT175 in regulating mitochondrial function to impact aging”Associate Professor, UAB Department of Biology
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Hongying Wang, Ph.D.
Project: “Ghrelin receptor in microglia mediates the pathology of Alzheimer’s disease in an age-dependent manner”Postdoctoral Fellow, Texas A&M University, Department of Nutrition
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Year 8
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Jarrod Barnes, Ph.D.
Project: “O-Linked N-Acetylglucosamine Regulates Aging Hallmarks in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension”Associate Professor, UAB, Department of Medicine - Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care
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Stefanie Krick, M.D., Ph.D.
Project: “The Cystic Fibrosis Airways – establishing a novel in vitro and in vivo model to study the biology of aging in the lung”Associate Professor, UAB, Department of Medicine-Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care
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Manuel Rosa-Garrido, Ph.D.
Project: “Role of chromatin structure in mediating the pathological effects of cardiac aging”Assistant Professor, UAB, Department of Biomedical Engineering
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Keshav Singh, Ph.D.
Project: “Establishing mitochondrial dysfunction as a hallmark of ovarian aging”Professor, UAB, Department of Genetics, Research Division
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Daniel Tyrrell, Ph.D.
Project: “Determining cytotoxic T cell phenotype and function in the aging brain”Assistant Professor, UAB, Department of Pathology - Molecular and Cellular
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Sara Casado Zapico, Ph.D.
Project: “Development of the first epigenetic clock in tooth tissues. Towards a better understanding of tooth aging”Assistant Professor, Chemistry and Environmental Science, New Jersey Institute of Technology
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Year 7
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Martha Field, Ph.D.
Project: “Impact of B12 deficiency on skeletal muscle mitochondrial DNA and function in advanced age”Assistant Professor, Division of Nutritional Sciences, Cornell University
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Teresa Liu, Ph.D.
Project: “Mitochondrial dysfunction leads to dysregulation of the Krebs cycle in BPH/LUTS”Assistant Scientist, University of Wisconsin, Department of Urology, Madison
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Anna Thalacker-Mercer, Ph.D.
Project: “Impact of B12 deficiency on skeletal muscle mitochondrial DNA and function in advanced age”Assistant Professor, UAB Department of Cell, Developmental and Integrative Biology
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Year 6
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Eugene Becker, Ph.D.
Project: “Aging-Associated Lung Fibrosis: Epithelial Bioenergetics and Regeneration”Postdoctoral Fellow, UAB Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy & Critical Care Medicine
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Abbi Hernandez, Ph.D.
Project: “Impact of Regional Microbiome Specificity on Age- and Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Metabolic Impairment”Postdoctoral Trainee, UAB Department of Medicine, Division of Gerontology, Geriatric and Palliative Care
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Deepa Satyaseelan, Ph.D.
Project: “The Role of Necroptosis on the Levels of Circulating Cell-Free mtDNA in Aging”Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Science Center
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Year 5
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Stanislava Chtarbanova, Ph.D.
Project: “Bioenergetics of virus infection in aged Drosophila”Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences, The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
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Eric P. Plaisance, Ph.D., FACSM
Project: “Role of an exogenous ketone ester on histone deacetylase (HDAC) expression and age-related skeletal muscle loss”Associate Professor and Chair, UAB Department of Human Studies
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Debasish Sinha, Ph.D. & Jennifer Salvitti Davis, M.D.
Project: “Linking metabolic changes to neutrophil activation in the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration (AMD)”Chair in Ophthalmology | Professor of Ophthalmology, UAB College of Arts and Sciences
Cell Biology and Developmental Biology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine -
Josh Stern, Ph.D.
Project: “Gene Expression Changes from Telomere Shortening and the Impact on Oxidative Stress”Assistant Professor, Department of Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham
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Michael Stout, Ph.D.
Project: “Mechanisms of metabolic, inflammatory, and healthspan enhancement by 17alpha-estradiol”Assistant Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences, The University of Oklahoma Health Science Center
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Year 4
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Melissa Harris, Ph.D.
Project: “Using melanocyte stem cells to address the role of quiescence in reduced stem cell function with age”Assistant Professor, UAB College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Biology
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Dudley William Lamming, Ph.D.
Project: “Regulation of central metabolism by calories and fasting”Assistant Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Research Health Scientist, William S. Middleton
VA Memorial Hospital -
Merry-Lynn McDonald, Ph.D.
Project: “Mitochondrial Function, Sarcopenia and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)”Assistant Professor, UAB Heersink School of Medicine Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary/Allergy/Critical Care
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Orian Shirihai, M.D., Ph.D.
Project: “Testing the methods for measuring mitochondrial function in frozen-thawed mononuclear cells and platelets”Professor of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine
UCLA -
Quihong Li, Ph.D. | Patricia Jumbo-Lucioni, M.D., Ph.D
Shared Project: “Establishing the methodological basis for a high throughput screening of genetically modified probiotics in aging and Alzheimer’s disease models”Associate Professor, Department of Physiology & Functional Genomics and Department of Pharmacodynamics
University of Florida | Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmaceutical, Social and Administrative Sciences
McWhorter School of Pharmacy, Samford University
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Year 3
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Karthikeyani Chellappa, Ph.D.
Project: “NAD metabolism and Aging: Impact on the composition of the gut microbiome”Postdoctoral Fellow, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
Department of Physiology, Institute for Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism -
Helen E. Collins, Ph.D.
Project: “Dysregulation of local calcium signaling increases risk of diabetic cardiomyopathy in the aging female heart”Postdoctoral Fellow, UAB Heersink School of Medicine
Department of Pathology, Division of Molecular & Cellular Pathology -
Dao-Fu Dai, MD, Ph.D.
Project: “Mitochondrial Oxidative Stress in Kidney Aging and Chronic Kidney Diseases”Assistant Professor, University of Iowa Health Care
Department of Pathology -
Amit Hagar, Ph.D.
Project: “Endurance Training and Alzheimer’s Disease Progression–Evidence and Mechanisms”Professor and Chair, Indiana University Bloomington
Department of History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine
Adjunct - Philosophy, Cognitive Science, Intelligent Systems Engineering, Environmental Health -
Scott Phillips, Ph.D.
Project: “Muc5B Overexpression Increases Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Bleomycin-Induced Pulmonary Fibrosis”Scientist I, UAB Heersink School of Medicine
Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine
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Year 2
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Thomas Buford, Ph.D.
Project: “Role of the Gut Microbiome in Inflammation of Aging”Associate Professor, UAB Department of Medicine, Division of Gerontology/Geriatrics/Palliative Care
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Nicole C. Riddle, Ph.D.
Project: “Altered metabolism in a chromatin mutant”Assistant Professor, UAB College of Arts and Sciences
Department of Biology -
Michael Sandel, Ph.D.
Project: “Toward a personalized bioenergetic health index: accounting for heredity and life history using structural mtDNA variants”Assistant Professor, The University West Alabama College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences
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Year 1
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Karen Bernard, Ph.D.
Project: “NADPH oxidase 4 control of metabolic reprogramming and its implication in apoptosis resistance of senescent lung fibroblasts”Assistant Professor, UAB Heersink School of Medicine Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine
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Peggy Biga, Ph.D.
Project: “Long-term treatment with Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide (TCAP) improves metabolic efficiency and aging pathologies by regulating glucose metabolism and energy output”Assistant Professor, UAB College of Arts and Sciences
Department of Biology -
Liou Y. Sun, M.D., Ph.D.
Project: “Environmental temperature, GH signaling and energy metabolism of healthy aging”Assistant Professor, UAB College of Arts and Sciences
Department of Biology
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