Vanderbilt Dermatology Translational Research Clinic (VDTRC)
Making skin measurements for clinical impact
Director: Eric Tkaczyk
RESEARCH. Currently, my team focuses on three externally funded directions:
1. Erythema analysis by artificial intelligence (AI). We have developed AI technology to measure skin erythema quickly and reproducibly using photographs. This is important because we have shown that skin erythema is a trackable biomarker strongly associated with long-term mortality of chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). The NIH clinical oncology study section recently scored my five-year R01 proposal (>$4M budget) to validate this technology in the top 3rd percentile.
2. Mechanical measurement of sclerosing disease. To address the unmet need to track the efficacy of antifibrotic therapy of sclerotic GVHD and systemic sclerosis, my team has pioneered handheld devices to measure skin mechanical parameters. For this work, the Department of Veterans Affairs has dedicated >$4M of grants with me as PI, including a new four-year MERIT award in 2024.
3. Imaging for multicenter trials. My team leverages our innovative technology to help others examine clinical outcomes. For the North American Therapeutics in Epidermal Necrolysis Syndrome trial (clinicaltrials.gov: NCT02987257; PI: Phillips), my team designed the clinical and photographic assessment of detached skin, the primary trial endpoint. We also implemented an app-based infrastructure to collect photographs daily at >20 sites. In Africa, we have led analogous efforts for the PALM007 mpox (formerly monkeypox) therapy trial (NCT05559099; PI: Muyembe-Tamfum). Moreover, we developed an AI photo analysis algorithm to automate the laborious daily counting of thousands of mpox lesions.