CTS Pilot Awards Program

The Clinical and Translational Science (CTS) Pilot Awards Program is designed to support innovative, early-stage research. This program aims to catalyze high-impact projects that have the potential to translate basic discoveries into clinical applications, improve patient care and advance personalized medicine.

CTS Pilot Award Program supports pilot projects in clinical and translational science, the field of investigation focused on understanding the scientific and operational principles underlying each step of the translational process.

Whereas translational research focuses on the specific case of a target or disease, translational science generates scientific and operational innovations that overcome longstanding challenges and roadblocks along the translational research pipeline. These include scientific, operational, financial, and administrative innovations that transform the way research is conducted, making it faster, more efficient, and more impactful.

CTPH Pilot Award applications will be accepted once per year.

2026 Pilot Awards Program

  • Request for Applications

    Review the full RFA for complete information about the 2026 competition.

    Download RFA

  • Informational Webinar

    If you missed the webinar, a recording is available to view.

    Watch Recording

  • Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS)

    Coming soon.

    Learn More

Program Awardees

  • Foundational Graph Transformers for Spatial Multi-Omics of the Tumor Immune Microenvironment

    Tania Banerjee, Ph.D.
    University of Houston

    A Novel Mitochondrial Permeability Transition Pore Biosensor for High-Throughput Genetic and Small Molecular Screening Applications

    Michael Bround, Ph.D.
    Baylor College of Medicine

    Smaller, Safer, Faster: Developing A Novel Translational Science Team to Bring Microfluidic Technology Rapidly to Patient Care

    Lam Fong, M.D.
    Baylor College of Medicine

    Bridging the Gap Between Genetic Testing and Clinical Care Through Comprehensive Functional Mapping of STAT Gene Variants

    Sebastian Ochoa, M.D.
    Baylor College of Medicine

    Leveraging RNA Mis-Splicing to Translate Therapeutic Vulnerabilities from Cell Lines to Patient

    Lukas Simon, Ph.D.
    Baylor College of Medicine

    Enabling Precision Medicine: Developing Blood-based Biomarkers of Response to FDA- Approved Therapies for Routine Clinical Implementation

    Meghana Trivedi, Ph.D.
    University of Houston

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