Research

Shaping the future of medicine with innovative research

The research we do today impacts our community tomorrow. Our investigators – leaders in state-of-the-art scientific exploration – excel in the fields of diabetes and endocrinology, reproductive medicine, healthcare analytics and oncology. We specialize in translational research, taking results from the laboratory bench to the patient bedside. Partner with us as we search for answers to the healthcare issues facing our community and the world.

“We're hoping to be able to relate pregnancies that have some problems ... with the changes that we can identify in the first trimester, and we are using ultrasound to do this.”

Alfred Abuhamad, MD

Mason C. Andrews Chair in Obstetrics and Gynecology
President and Provost, Dean of the School of Medicine

Meet the Investigators

Woong-Ki Kim, PhD

Dr. Kim, Associate Professor of Microbiology and Molecular Cell Biology, is searching for a cure to HIV. He is currently leading a five-year study aimed at targeting the HIV reservoir of the brain in HIV-infected patients receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). The study is funded by a $3.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) – one of three NIH grants Dr. Kim has been awarded since 2015. Read more.

Larry Sanford, PhD

Dr. Sanford, Professor of Pathology and Anatomy, is a highly regarded expert on the neurophysiology of sleep and stress. His primary research focuses on the brain mechanisms linking sleep, stress and learning in anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder. Dr. Sanford has been awarded over $5 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health since 2007. He was an Associate Editor of the medical journal “SLEEP” from 2006 to 2016. Read more.

Elena Galkina, PhD, FAHA

Dr. Galkina, Associate Professor of Microbiology & Molecular Cell Biology, has studied immune responses in atherosclerosis and type 2 diabetes. She received $1.76 million from the NIH’s National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute to study how atherosclerotic conditions affect immune cell functions. She is a member of the American Heart Association’s Women’s Leadership Committee and an AHA fellow. She works with the NHLBI Vascular Cell and Molecular Biology Study Section, which reviews NIH grant applications. Read more.

Eva Forgacs-Lonart, PhD

Dr. Forgacs-Lonart, Associate Professor of Physiological Sciences, has completed extensive research on myosin, a motor protein that helps muscles move, and has received grants from the NIH and the American Heart Association. She is investigating how cardiomyopathy mutations alter the ATPase enzyme mechanism and how different pharmacological agents affect the chemomechanical cycle. She has worked at EVMS since 2001 and has served as a postdoctoral fellow with the AHA. Read more.

O. John Semmes, PhD

Dr. Semmes, the Anthem Distinguished Professor for Cancer Research, Associate Dean for Translational Research and Professor of Microbiology and Molecular Cell Biology, has led EVMS’ Leroy T. Canoles Jr. Cancer Research Center as its director since 2009. With nearly $900,000 in funding from the NIH’s National Cancer Institute, Dr. Semmes’ team identified a first-of-its-kind liquid-biopsy biomarker for detecting advanced prostate cancer in urine samples. He is an editorial board member for “Cancer Research,” a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. Read more.

Find an Investigator

Researchers@EVMS is a research faculty profile system to assist users with locating EVMS research expertise or to find a research collaborator or research mentor.

Learn more

Learn More