CTSI / Iris-Cantor Pilot Project Awardees

The Iris Cantor-UCLA Women’s Health Center/UCLA National Center of Excellence in Women’s Health seeks to promote women’s health equity by targeting this pilot funding to address health disparities in traditionally underserved populations of women (e.g. racial/ethnic minorities, low socioeconomic status, rural residence, disabled etc.).

View all past awardees and the titles of their funded projects below.

2023 Awardees

Project Title: "Neural control of thermoregulatory changes in accompanying pregnancy"

Project Title: "Reducing cardiovascular risk in women living with HIV in Durban, South Africa"

Project Title: "Innate Immune Mechanisms in Female Sex Bias in Autoimmunity"

Project Title: "The role of estrogen in parasympathetic remodeling after myocardial infarction"

Project Title: "Elucidating the Sex Differences in Therapeutic Window of AAV Gene Therapy and the Therapeutic Potential of Ovarian Hormones for Congenital Hereditary Endothelial Dystrophy"

2022 Awardees

Project Title: "Culture, Postpartum Depressive Symptoms, and Help Seeking in Black Mothers: A Mixed Methods Study"

Project Title: "Hereditary Cancer Risk Screening and Genetic Testing Program in a Large Safety Net Hospital"

Project Title: "Dynamics of Estrogen Response in Medial Preoptic Area Neurons"

Project Title: "Nutritional Impact of Paired vs Unpaired Breast Feeding"

Project Title: "Role of epigenetic crosstalks in mediating the sensitivity of female germ cells to environmental exposures"

2021 Awardees

Project Title: "Gender Difference in maladaptive choice (risky choices) in men and women with stimulant use disorder"

Project Title: "Sex differences in bile acid composition and atherosclerosis"

Project Title: "Mechanism of tumor associated macrophage expansion in ovarian cancer"

Project Title: "Establishing a model for human placental defects in preeclampsia"

2020 Awardees

Project Title: "Gender Difference in maladaptive choice (risky choices) in men and women with stimulant use disorder"

Project Title: "Health disparities among women displaced in California’s affordable housing crisis"

Project Title: "Sex differences in the role of iron regulation in pulmonary hypertension disorder"

Project Title: "Anti-estrogen therapy to improve response to mTOR inhibitors in female patients with lung squamous cell carcinomarder"

Project Title: "Building a nonhuman primate model for overcoming primary ovarian insufficiency with regeneration from pluripotent stem cells"

2019 Awardees

Project Title: "The Role of Vaginal Microbiota in Urinary Urge Incontinence"

Project Title: "Investigating Y Chromosome Protection Against Pulmonary Hypertension as a Novel Therapeutic Strategy for Women"

Project Title: "Antiestrogens in Breast Cancer Immunotherapy"

Project Title: "Tamoxifen and Thermoregulation: Investigating the Role of ER Alpha Expressing Neuronal Populations in the Hypothalamus"

Project Title: "Interaction Between Molecular and Metabolic Pathways that Influence Adverse Development of Pre-Implantation Embryos in Diabetes"

2018 Awardees

Project Title: "Targeting Ferroptosis in Ovarian Cancer"

Project Title: "Estrogen Sensitive Neurons that Regulate Temperature: Implications for the Mechanism of Hot Flashes"

Project Title: "Dietary Supplementation to Prevent and Reverse Statin-Related Diabetes in Females"

Project Title: "Decreasing Maternal Morbidity by Monitoring Circulating Trophoblasts (cTBs): A Maternal Biomarker for Morbidly Adherent Placentation"

Project Title: "High Throughput Screening of HGSOC Organoids to Identify Effective Drug Combinations for Treatment of Ovarian Cancer (ReACp53 and Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors)"

2017 Awardees

Project Title: "A Female Specific Brain-Bone Axis: Investigating Bone Regulating Neurons in the Hypothalamus"

Project Title: "A Mixed Methods Approach to Understanding Gender Differences in Pain and Behavioral Responses to Complementary and Integrative Health (CIH/CAM) in Military Veterans"

Project Title: "Exploring the Use of Stem Cells to Overcome Infertility after Cancer Therapy"

Project Title: "Hypothalamic Astrocyte Proliferation: Role in Female Reproduction (Puberty)"

Project Title: "Understanding Sexual Dimorphism of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease via Big Data Integration"

2016 Awardees

Project Title: "Sex- and Age-specific Differences in Gro1 Expression Influence Hippocampal Neurogenesis Response to Inflammation"

Project Title: "The Role of Iron-Regulatory Hormone Hepcidin in Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes"

Project Title: "Using an Index of Bone Balance to Predict the Timing and Magnitude of Menopause-Related Changes in Bone Mass, Microarchitecture, and Strength"

2015 Awardees

Project Title: "Is Switching from Long to Short Form RECK an Important Contributor to Breast Cancer Progression and Metastasis for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer?"

Project Title: "Molecular Events Associated with Ovarian Aging that Lead to the Development of Ovarian Cancer"

Project Title: "Sex Differences in Gut Microbiota in Irritable Bowel Syndrome"

Project Title: "Improving the Epigenetic Stability of Female Human Embryonic and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells for their Safe Use in Downstream Applications"

Project Title: "Gender Differences in Behavioral and Neural Response to Reduced Nicotine Cigarettes in Young Smokers"

2014 Awardees

Project Title: "Determination of EMP2 antibody drug conjugates for treatment of triple negative breast cancer"

Project Title: "Regulation of maternal and fetal iron status during pregnancy"

Project Title: "Studying age accelerating effects in breast tissue and their relationship to breast cancer risk: How methylation patterns in female breast change with hormone exposure"

2013 Awardees

Project Title: "Early Life Influences on Adulthood Health:  Exploring the Association in Breast Cancer Survivors and Young Adults"

Project Title: "Impact of Skeletal Muscle Lmcd1 Expression on ERalpha Action in the Maintenance of Skeletal Homeostasis"

Project Title: "Genetic Variation in Gene Expression in Adipose Tissue in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome"

Project Title: "Brain Activity Related to Hunger and Satiation in Obese Women, and its Relation to Weight Loss after Bariatric Surgery"

Project Title: "The Estrogen Paradox and the Role of micro-RNA 193 and the Rescue Action of Phytoestrogen Genistein in Pulmonary Hypertension"