David Threadgill, Jefferson-Pilot Award

Oct 1, 2004

David Threadgill, Assistant Professor in the Department of Genetics, has been awarded the 2004 Jefferson-Pilot Fellowship in Academic Medicine. This fellowship is awarded each year by the UNC School of Medicine through a trust fund established by the Jefferson-Pilot Corporation. Recipients receive $20,000 over a four-year term to be used for scholarly endeavors at the recipient’s discretion. The aim of the fellowship is to recognize and retain promising junior faculty at UNC who have demonstrated substantial academic productivity and scholarly achievement in advance of tenure.

For his PhD thesis at Texas A&M University, David produced one of the first genetic maps of the bovine genome, which provided the framework for the bovine genome project. As a post-doctoral fellow at Case Western Reserve University, he made seminal contributions to our understanding of growth factors in early mouse development. While at Case, David published a key paper in Science (269:230-4) describing the dramatic effect that genetic background has on mutant phenotypes in mice. This work set the stage for the research plan he has continued to pursue as an independent investigator, first at Vanderbilt University and now here at UNC.

David’s multidisciplinary research program focuses on inter-individual differences that are responsible for distinct susceptibilities to disease initiation and progression. He believes that many common diseases, such as cancer, will not be defeated by treatment but rather by prevention. This is especially true from a public-health standpoint, as quality healthcare today is at a premium and not universally accessible. Thus, his laboratory focuses on combining genetic variation, high-throughput genomic technologies, and computational analysis to build accurate and predictive models of disease susceptibility.

David’s research has been well-received by the scientific community as evidenced by his many publications, grant awards, and accolades. He is an energetic and active participant in local, national and international research communities. He is also deeply committed to teaching and training undergraduates, graduates, post-doctoral fellows and even mentoring new faculty. “I try to lead by example and emphasize critical thought, high ethical standards, and collaboration, which are the cornerstones of publicly funded biomedical research,” says David.

Based on David’s exceptional record of achievement and future promise as a scientist and mentor, the Jefferson-Pilot Selection Committee has certainly chosen a most deserving individual to recognize with this year’s award.




	Oct 1, 2004 David Threadgill, Assistant Professor in the Department of Genetics, has been awarded the 2004 Jefferson-Pilot Fellowship in Academic Medicine. This fellowship is awarded each year by the UNC School of Medicine through a trust fund established by the Jefferson-Pilot Corporation. Recipients receive $20,000 over a four-year term to be used for scholarly endeavors at the recipient’s discretion. The aim of the fellowship is to recognize and retain promising junior faculty at UNC who have demonstrated substantial academic productivity and scholarly achievement in advance of tenure. For his PhD thesis at Texas A&M University, David produced one of the first genetic maps of the bovine genome, which provided the framework for the bovine genome project. As a post-doctoral fellow at Case Western Reserve University, he made seminal contributions to our understanding of growth factors in early mouse development. While at Case, David published a key paper in Science (269:230-4) describing the dramatic effect that genetic background has on mutant phenotypes in mice. This work set the stage for the research plan he has continued to pursue as an independent investigator, first at Vanderbilt University and now here at UNC. David’s multidisciplinary research program focuses on inter-individual differences that are responsible for distinct susceptibilities to disease initiation and progression. He believes that many common diseases, such as cancer, will not be defeated by treatment but rather by prevention. This is especially true from a public-health standpoint, as quality healthcare today is at a premium and not universally accessible. Thus, his laboratory focuses on combining genetic variation, high-throughput genomic technologies, and computational analysis to build accurate and predictive models of disease susceptibility. David’s research has been well-received by the scientific community as evidenced by his many publications, grant awards, and accolades. He is an energetic and active participant in local, national and international research communities. He is also deeply committed to teaching and training undergraduates, graduates, post-doctoral fellows and even mentoring new faculty. “I try to lead by example and emphasize critical thought, high ethical standards, and collaboration, which are the cornerstones of publicly funded biomedical research,” says David. Based on David’s exceptional record of achievement and future promise as a scientist and mentor, the Jefferson-Pilot Selection Committee has certainly chosen a most deserving individual to recognize with this year’s award. back to top


			Links: Threadgill CCGS page Threadgill lab website