Research

Research is at the heart of the academic Learning Health System, and the goal for all of our research is to improve the health of our patients and communities, with an emphasis on health equity. We blend research into medical education and patient care to foster innovation and enrich learning while advancing clinical care.

Our researchers continually work to:

Discover the next treatment
Improve protocols and methods
Develop the tools needed to provide outstanding patient care

Our expertise in informatics and health care innovation generates new ideas and outcomes. We integrate our research into clinical practice via biomedical informatics, virtual health and implementation science, then take what we learn and cycle it back into our research.

With 42 hospitals and 1,500 locations delivering care, we can apply our expertise to health system science and share our effective practices throughout our system and influence scientific discoveries internationally.

Our research promotes health care for all.

Focus Areas

To maximize synergy and translate findings into improved care, we have seven primary areas of focus at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. These align our institutional strengths with the health needs of our region and encompass research across the lifespan:

Healthy aging

Our bodies and our brains change significantly as we age, sometimes leading to disability and nearly always to mobility issues. Our memories and thinking skills change, too. Through our work at the Claude Pepper Older American Independence Center, the Center for Vaccines at the Extremes of Aging, the Roena B. Kulynych Center for Memory and Cognition Research, and more, we use a combination of clinical, statistical, and basic science approaches to:

Better understand the mechanisms of these changes
Identify the factors that predict them, and
Test new strategies to prevent or reverse age-related decline in neurological function.

Also our Sticht Center for Healthy Aging and Alzheimer’s Prevention, a state-of-the-art geriatric clinical and research center, is the first research and clinical facility of its kind to incorporate geriatric acute care, transitional care, psychiatry, rehabilitation and basic/clinical research under one roof.

Alzheimer's prevention

The Sticht Center also includes our Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, where our researchers are trying to unlock the causes and early signs of Alzheimer’s disease by focusing on research, education and potential treatments aimed at preventing or slowing Alzheimer’s disease. We concentrate on early intervention and understanding the role played by disorders such as hypertension and diabetes in Alzheimer’s disease. We also work to increase clinical study enrollment of people who are at increased risk and not adequately represented in clinical research.

Cancer

Through our Comprehensive Cancer Center, we have pioneered numerous breakthroughs in the understanding and treatment of cancer, including novel chemotherapeutics, immunotherapies, small molecule and nanoparticle therapies, and organ culture. Collaboration and multidisciplinary research drive our disease-oriented teams and centers of excellence.

Cardiovascular disease

We’ve been at the forefront of heart and vascular care for nearly 30 years, and the  Cardiovascular Sciences Center are committed to better understanding the causes of and best treatments for hypertension and vascular disease and to providing key coordination and support services to our investigators.

Diabetes, obesity and metabolism

Two of America’s most common health issues are diabetes and obesity. Our Center on Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism strives to uncover new information regarding the metabolic basis of diabetes and obesity, as well as the wide spectrum of diseases in which metabolism plays a role. Researchers then take that knowledge and apply it to improving strategies for prevention, treatment and diagnosis of those conditions.

Neurosciences

Our institution features a large and diverse body of neuroscience research. In addition to work in ALS, spinal conditions, headaches, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and stroke, our Center for Addiction Research is a leading pain and addiction research program focused on improving treatments for chronic pain and addressing substance use and abuse.

Regenerative medicine

The Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine is recognized as an international leader in translating scientific discovery into clinical therapies, with many world firsts, including the development and implantation of the first engineered organ in a patient. Over 400 people at the institute, the largest in the world, work on more than 40 different tissues and organs. A number of the basic principles of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine were first developed at the institute. WFIRM researchers have successfully engineered replacement tissues and organs in all 4 categories – flat structures, tubular tissues, hollow organs and solid organs. Additionally, 16 different applications of cell/tissue therapy technologies, such as skin, urethras, cartilage, bladders, muscle, kidney and vaginal organs, have been successfully used in human patients.

Research Leadership

Our team of research leaders provide strategic and operational leadership to grow our impact.

Kristie Foley, PhD

Associate Director for Population Health Sciences, Comprehensive Cancer Center
Chair, Implementation Science

Jamy Ard, MD

Interim Associate Dean, Research
Professor, Epidemiology and Prevention

Rachel Seymour, PhD

Associate Dean for Research, Atrium Health

Joseph Hsu, MD, FAOA

Associate Dean for Research, Atrium Health

Bridging Research and Patient Care

Creating meaningful health care solutions for patients and families requires information flowing from research to patient care and back again. We facilitate that process in a variety of ways, including:

Health Care Innovation

Our Center for Healthcare Innovation identifies new innovations with great potential to improve health, rapidly assesses them and evaluates their impact, then partners with implementation science and other teams to quickly integrate clinical trial results or guidelines for improving care.

Center for Artificial Intelligence

Wake Forest University School of Medicine established the Center for Artificial Intelligence to foster better health across our School’s local and national communities by advancing the science and application of artificial intelligence through research, education, and innovation.

Population Health

The Division of Public Health Sciences brings together faculty and staff from four areas – biostatistics and data science, social science and health policy, epidemiology and prevention, and implementation science – to create better strategies to enhance public health and prevent disease.

Precision Medicine

Our Center for Precision Medicine focuses on collaborative interdisciplinary research around causes of common human disorders, such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity and other aging-related morbidities. With a research emphasis on genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, bioinformatics and more, we can provide our patients with more precise, targeted therapies.

Institutionally Supported Institutes and Centers

Interdepartmental organization units focused predominantly on translational, clinical and/or basic science research which facilitates development of a common, focused research agenda aligned with strategic priorities, coordinating contributions from multiple disciplines (other centers, divisions/departments, and programs).

Features and Stories

Dig deeper into our culture of research and education by exploring some of our latest features and stories.

Grants and Published Research

Grants and Published Research 600x600

Learn more about the grants and published research at Wake Forest University School of Medicine

Shared Resources and Cores

By centralizing the equipment and expertise of faculty and technicians in a common facility, the services can provide maximum benefit and leverage across the institution as support for a multitude of investigators.

Research Core Facilities are important to the research mission for effective and efficient use of:

Specialized skills
Expensive and/or complicated equipment
Standardized services

Services and Fees
These services are generally purchased on a fee-for-service basis, unless the project is large enough that a percent effort is requested in the grant or contract.

Learn More About Shared Resources and Cores

Research Labs

Faculty investigators throughout Wake Forest University School of Medicine utilize state-of-the-art laboratories and interdisciplinary resources to further enhance research finding and advancements in care and treatment options to better the health of the population.

View all Research Labs at Wake Forest University School of Medicine

Training Programs

We host multiple NIH-funded institutional training (T32) grants for both pre-doctoral (graduate students) and post-doctoral (fellows). These involve faculty from multiple graduate programs and from basic science and clinical disciplines, which fosters collaboration across traditional departmental boundaries. Our trainees have opportunities to work on the frontiers of translational science in alignment with our region’s most pressing health needs, and many have the chance to present posters or talks at national and international conferences.

Technology Transfer and Commercialization

Research Focus Areas

Translation to Care

More Resources

Research

ENVISION: Campaign to Accelerate Discovery, Hope and Health

Focus Areas

Healthy aging

Alzheimer's prevention

Cancer

Cardiovascular disease

Diabetes, obesity and metabolism

Neurosciences

Regenerative medicine

Health Equity

Research Leadership

Bridging Research and Patient Care

Institutionally Supported Institutes and Centers

Comprehensive Cancer Center

Sticht Center for Healthy Aging and Alzheimer’s Prevention

Cardiovascular Sciences Center

Center on Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism

Institutes and Centers

Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM)

Shared Resources and Cores

Research Labs

Training Programs