# Mentoring research in precision medicine for lung disease

> **NIH NIH K24** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · 2020 · $120,373

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Patient Oriented Research (POR) that focuses on understanding disease mechanisms and classifying
diseases based on biology is especially powerful in this era of genomics and informatics. By combining a firm
understanding of the design and conduct of rigorous human studies with the growing toolkit of the molecular
biologist and geneticist, modern patient-oriented physician-scientists have the potential to overcome age-old
barriers to the development of targeted therapies in common and morbid respiratory diseases. The goal of this
application is to effectively mentor young patient-oriented research scientists in translational POR in a way that
integrates clinical research methods and innovative bench methods (applied to human samples) to advance
precision medicine. My research career has been devoted to integrating clinical and bench research methods
to ask clinically-relevant questions in human studies. These include: (1) applying molecular phenotyping to
asthma and COPD to identify subgroups characterized by type 2 inflammation and (2) revisiting the basic
clinical criteria for diagnosis of COPD to account for “smokers with symptoms despite preserved pulmonary
function”, a subgroup that is not captured in existing guidelines, and then studying the biology underlying this
condition. The goal of this K24 grant application is to further augment my capabilities in POR and to provide
mentoring to junior investigators in translational approaches to POR. Some of these mentees, especially my
direct mentees, are already pursuing work at the interface of clinical and translational research. Others are
primarily trained in traditional clinical research methods and have expressed a desire to gain bench experience
with human samples. Finally, a smaller but important group consists of mentees trained in basic science who
wish to learn the methods of POR to forge human relevance for their work. I believe all of these diverse
approaches to translational POR are valuable. With the support of my Division, I am starting a “Pulmonary
Precision Medicine Core Laboratory” at UCSF which will provide scalable space and resources and a common
area for didactics and informal research interactions all oriented towards translational POR. This K24 grant will
protect my time and provide resources (some matched by Divisional resources) to ensure the success of this
endeavor. This K24 grant application proposes three aims. The first two are scientific aims that reflect two
overarching research areas and provide ample opportunity for mentees interested in POR in asthma and
COPD. My third aim, which is organizational, describes my approach to developing this core training laboratory
designed to mentor junior investigators who are interested in translational POR in a range of pulmonary
diseases.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9929001
- **Project number:** 5K24HL137013-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO
- **Principal Investigator:** PRESCOTT G WOODRUFF
- **Activity code:** K24 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $120,373
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-04-28 → 2022-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9929001

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9929001, Mentoring research in precision medicine for lung disease (5K24HL137013-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9929001. Licensed CC0.

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