tl1 program

TL1 Participants

Learn more about the TL1 program through the experiences and achievements of past and present participants.

Testimonials

Henrietta Fasanya

“I have the opportunity to work with an engineering team and learn how mechanical engineers contribute to translational science. Through our project specifically, I’m learning about obtaining patents and understanding how, when, and in what direction you push projects forward for translational science.”

Leanne Dumeny

“The team aspect was particularly motivating for me. Working in a collaboration added a different blend to my work.”

Robert Eisinger

“It has opened opportunities and collaborations that I otherwise would not have pursued. The team-based approach is novel and enriching and by far the highlight of this program”

Current TL1 Trainees and Projects

A TL1 Team Approach to Kratom & Health Outcomes for Pregnant Women (Kratom HOPe): Utilizing a back-translational approach to examining perinatal kratom use in humans and rodents

TL1 2022 Trainee Team

Carolin Hoeflich, PhD Candidate
Michelle Kuntz, PhD Candidate

Mentors

Catherine W. Striley, PhD, MSW, MPE
Christopher R. McCurdy,PhD, FAAPS

A TL1 Team Approach Fetal Hyperinsulinemia in Diabetic Pregnancy: Effects on the Vasculature and Early Life Metabolism

TL1 2022 Trainee Team

Aditya Mahadevan, MD-PhD Candidate 
Jennifer Pruitt, PhD Candidate 

Mentors

Helen James, PhD
Leslie Parker, PhD

Advancing preclinical research using a robust in vitro exposure model for aerosol delivery to co-cultured primary human cells

TL1 2022 Trainee Team

Sripriya Nannu Shankar, PhD Candidate 
Amber Leigh O’connor, PhD Candidate

Mentors

Chang-Yu Wu, PhD
Tara Sabo-Attwood, PhD

A CTS team approach to isolate diverse NTS strains, compare the virulence of laboratory and community NTS, and investigate the potential of a novel exosome-derived vaccine strategy against NTS community isolates.

TL1 2021 Trainee Team

Lisa Emerson, PhD Candidate
Andrew Rainey, PhD Candidate

Mentors

Mariola Edelmann, PhD
Anthony Maurelli, PhD

Research Description:

Florida has an incidence of NTS twice the national average. Clinical surveillance is the current standard for community surveillance of NTS. Only 28% of NTS cases are identified in a clinical setting, leaving a major gap in community surveillance. The goal of this project is to apply wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) to determine the trends of NTS through analysis of influent wastewater, and to isolate and identify circulating serotypes among samples that are representative of the human population in Gainesville, FL. Overall, 81/106 (76%) samples tested positive for NTS between September 2020 – September 2021. Of those 81 samples that tested positive for NTS, we were able to isolate viable NTS from 56 (69%) of those samples. Through WBE, we can better understand NTS disease dynamics to fill the gap left by clinical surveillance and provide a more comprehensive community-level assessment of NTS.

A CTS Team Approach on Team approach to Establishing Steps towards Reconciliation and Trust among Black Women toward Reproductive Health Providers.

TL1 2021 Trainee Team

Tyler Nesbit, PhD Candidate
Karen Awura Adjoa Ronke Coker, PhD Candidate

Mentors

Larry Forthun, PhD
Sarah McKune, MPH, PhD

Research Description:

The goals of the proposed project are to 1) identify the critical components of trust required by Black Women to build a visible expression of trust within their reproductive health space, and 2) incorporate the elements of trust identified into a mindfulness-based communication tool; for reproductive health care providers. We are applying a mixed-methods approach inclusive of questionnaires and focus groups. Our study populations include of persons who identify as 18+ Black Women in Alachua County, and reproductive healthcare providers (e.g., Ob-Gyn, midwives, nurse practitioners) at UF Health Shands Hospital.

A TL1 Team Approach to Topological Data Analysis for Interpretation of Medical Images and Risk Stratification in COVID-19

TL1 2021 Trainee Team

Osama Dasa, PhD Candidate 
Yara Skaf,  MD-PhD Candidate

Mentors

Thomas Pearson, MD, PhD, MPH
Reinhard Laubenbacher, PhD

Research Description

Topological data analysis (TDA), a set of computational tools stemming from an area of mathematics called topology, can be used to enhance traditional analytic techniques for biomedical image analysis and patient stratification by mortality risk.

Important documents

CAS Exemption