Vikhyat (Vik) Bebarta, MD was recently appointed Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Dr. Bebarta is also the Founding Director of the CU Center for COMBAT Research and the George B. Boedecker, Jr. and Boedecker Foundation Endowed Professor at the School of Medicine.
The Institute of Integration of Medicine & Science (IIMS) is proud of Vik as a 2010 recipient of a pilot project award during our first cycle of Clinical and Translational Science Award funding. At that time, he was Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine at San Antonio Military Medical Center and an officer at Lackland Air Force Base. His research project was entitled “Cobinamide: Evaluation of a new cyanide antidote in a critically ill swine model of acute cyanide toxicity.” The results of this work were published in 2014 with Vik as first author (Annals of Emergency Medicine 64:612-619, 2014). Moreover, the IIMS pilot project led to downstream funding of Dr. Bebarta’s grants from the National Institutes of Health and the Office of the Air Force Surgeon General.
In Dr. Bebarta’s reply to a recent note of congratulations from Dr. Clark, he said: “Thank you for the kind note and support. I’m grateful for the opportunity to serve and excited about what’s ahead for our team and for CU. My research career was launched while I was active duty with that small UT IIMS award, and the rest is history. Thanks for what you and your team are doing for the community!”
The IIMS is proud to use our pilot grant program not only to fund competitive science, but also to promote the careers of our investigators.
Congratulations to the 2025–2026 IIMS-CTSA Pilot Project Awardees on their outstanding proposals and commitment to advancing translational research. We look forward to seeing the progress and contributions your work will bring to the field and our community.
Single-cell spatial transcriptomic profiling of olfactory bulb cell types from Parkinson’s disease patients Biju Chandu (PI)
Biomarker-directed development of drugs with selectivity against triple-negative breast cancer subtypes April Risinger (PI)
Plasmodium vivax Vaccine Development: Translational Insights from Natural and Vaccine-Induced Immunity Gregory Ippolito (PI) & Evelien Bunnik (Co-PI)
Salivary Lactoferrin as a Non-Invasive Biomarker for Alzheimer’s Disease in an Ethnically Diverse Population Valentina Garbarino (PI) & Chinedu Udeh-Momoh (Co-PI)
Translational Technology Resource (TTR) Award Now Accepting Applications! by iims-ctsa@uthscsa.edu
The Institute for Integration of Medicine & Science (IIMS) is now accepting applications for Translational Technology Resource (TTR) awards to support genetic analyses at the single-cell level and spatial level. The proposed research must have relevance to clinical and/or translational science.
Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis. Proposals received on or before the 15th of a given month will be reviewed by the 15th of the following month.
Southwest National Primate Research Center (SNPRC) Pilot Research Program Call for Applications! by aolmo@txbiomed.org
The SNPRC Pilot Research program provides opportunities and support for investigators to use SNPRC nonhuman primate resources in highly focused, short-term studies with a high likelihood of enhancing the value, utility, feasibility, and attractiveness of nonhuman primates for biomedical research. High priority will be given to studies that propose to generate preliminary data for applications to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for support of future research projects. Those proposing to develop new nonhuman primate models of disease, or develop and/or test new research methods, instrumentation, or approaches for biomedical research using nonhuman primates, also will be considered responsive to the goals of the program.
Pilot Funding Opportunity for The Center for Pain Therapeutics and Addiction Research (CPTAR) Apply Now! by ruparels@uthscsa.edu
The Center for Pain Therapeutics and Addiction Research (CPTAR) is pleased to announce our inaugural new pilot funding program. Awards will support 12-month, discrete, well-defined pilot studies. Priority will be given to projects that align with the center’s mission to implement a transformative multidisciplinary approach to decrease pain and addiction and demonstrate a high likelihood of downstream federal grant funding.
Rare Diseases Are Not Rare! 2025 Challenge Prize Competition Apply Now! by ncatsinfo@nih.gov
More than 10,000 known rare diseases affect millions of people across the United States. We want to help raise awareness about rare diseases, the people and families they impact and the need for research and development of treatment strategies for addressing multiple rare diseases at a time. We are seeking your creativity and innovation to help us raise awareness through the Rare Diseases Are Not Rare! 2025 Challenge Prize Competition! Whether through visual art, photography, music or another artistic medium, your work can inspire action and shine a light on the rare disease community.
Submissions are due by Jan. 2, 2026. Learn more about the Challenge Prize Competition and how to submit an entry.
Upcoming Events
Aging Well Conference Join Us! by GomezA6@uthscsa.edu
Join us for an inspiring day of learning, connection, and community at the Aging Well Conference! This year's conference will feature Special Guest Speaker Dr. Michael Wargovich, who will present on "Chemoprevention"-a promising approach in which medical scientists explore how natural substances and medicines may help prevent cancer before it starts.
For more information, contact Ariel Gomez at GomezA6@uthscsa.edu.
Nuts & Bolts of Executing a Clinical or Population Research Study Register Now! by leta.moser@austin.utexas.edu
2025 IIMS Community Engagement Symposium Register Now! by IIMS-CE@uthscsa.edu
The Institute for Integration of Medicine & Science is thrilled to announce the plenary speaking team for the 2025 Community Engagement Symposium on November 8, 2025! Join us in welcoming Dr. Carmen Valdez (UT San Antonio School of Public Health), Ms. Marisa Oliva (Texas Children in Nature Network), and Miss. Regina Bocanegra (Rio Grande Valley) as our distinguished plenary speaking team. This year’s symposium will focus on “Deep Roots, Resilient Voices, and Collective Action through Community-Academic Partnerships in Health Research,” bringing together leaders who embody this theme.
The Perry & Ruby Stevens Parkinson’s Disease Center of Excellence Seminar! Join Us! by parkinsonscoe@uthscsa.edu
We invite clinicians, researchers, patients, caregivers, and community members to attend our upcoming seminar, hosted by the Perry & Ruby Stevens Parkinson’s Disease Center of Excellence. The series is part of our outreach and education efforts to share advances in Parkinson’s disease research and care.
Mike's Blog - Familiar Territory I’m writing this the week before the new fiscal year is scheduled to begin. The USG has its own unique way of telling time and the fiscal year always begins on October 1. In the absence of a full year’s budget which consists of twelve separate appropriation bills, Congress can pass a continuing resolution (CR) which keeps the government ‘open’ and operating at last year’s budget levels with the additional caveat that ‘new’ activities planned for the new fiscal year (FY26 for now) cannot move forward... Continue Reading
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