The following two candidates received the third ISAD research awards:
Sheng-Pei WANG, MD
National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan
University of California Berkeley, USA
July 2022
I am a dermatologist from Taiwan, and I am genuinely curious about how psychological stress, physical environment, and sociocultural factors impact atopic dermatitis. I believe that if we understand more about how environmental factors are shaping the development of atopic dermatitis, we can develop preventive measures to lower the rate of atopic dermatitis at the population level.
My project aims to understand the relationship of environmental microbial diversity and atopic dermatitis on a global scale by pairing large epidemiological allergy studies and global microbial sampling initiatives. It is an extension of my master thesis in which I worked with Dr. Katrina Abuabara at the University of California Berkeley and found promising preliminary results. I am very thankful to receive the support from ISAD Research Fellowship to continue working with Dr. Abuabara at the University of California San Francisco. The ISAD Research Fellowship not only enables me to return to the Bay Area and learn from leading experts in eczema and computational biology, but also provides a stepping stone to an academic career focused on atopic dermatitis.
Thank you!
➜ Download the project proposal
Paolo CUSTURONE, MD
Department of Dermatology, University of Messina, Messina, Italy (Guarneri Fabrizio, MD, PhD)
Erasmus MC University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (DirkJan Hijnen, MD, PhD)
July 2022
The aim of my project is to study the effectiveness of abrocitinib in daily practice. Abrocitinib is one of the latest JAK inhibitors. As a chronic dermatitis, atopic dermatitis (AD) requires often long term prescriptions for patients that are affected by it and, in severe cases, systemic medications. The monoclonal antibodies have improved effectively the quality of life of several patients worldwide, although presents several downsides like cost, way of administration and resistivity in some severe cases or specific subtypes of AD, such as the portrait dermatitis. The latest JAK inhibitors, to which abrocitinib belongs, have demonstrated efficacy, good safety profile and flexibility in dose adjustment, tailored to each patient.
At Erasmus MC, under the supervision of A/Prof. DirkJan Hijnen, JAK inhibitors are used for patients affected by severe forms of AD and are building a large registry that could be useful for data extraction and comparison with current and future therapies. I am very glad to carry out this project at the Erasmus MC, with the help of the generous support provided by ISAD Research Fellowship 2022.