A physician-researcher studying life-threatening infections is the latest U-M faculty member to be named a Taubman Emerging Scholar.
Scott Van Epps, MD, PhD, is an assistant professor in Emergency Medicine, Biomedical Engineering, and Macromolecular Science and Engineering. He also serves as an investigator for the Biointerfaces Institute and an associate director at the Michigan Center for Integrative Research in Critical Care.
Dr. Van Epps will receive an award of $200,000 over five years, to be used toward laboratory research, through a gift to the institute from philanthropists Leslie and Abigail Wexner.
His current projects include research into infections connected to implantable medical devices, rapid diagnostics for bloodstream infection, and novel treatment strategies including nanorod based PCR assay to detect bacteria in whole blood without culture. In future, he aims to partner with other researchers who are studying better methods for accelerating the diagnosis of sepsis.
The Taubman Emerging Scholars Program was established in 2011 to support early-career clinician-scientists on the University of Michigan Medical School faculty, as they establish their research programs and develop the credentials to qualify for traditional government and foundation grants. To date, 32 of these talented young physicians have received Emerging Scholar awards.
