Matthew Kolar receives NIH Early Independence Award

Matthew Kolar, M.D., Ph.D., associate physician diplomate in the Department of Dermatology at UC San Diego School of Medicine, has been awarded a highly prestigious and competitive five-year, $1.25 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director’s Early Independence Award for his project, “Chemoproteomics and Lipidomics for Identifying Dysregulated Enzymes and Lipids in Cutaneous Disorders.”

Atopic dermatitis is an inflammatory skin disease that causes severe itching, dry skin, and rashes. According to the National Eczema Association, more than 16.5 million adults and 9.6 million children in the United States suffer from atopic dermatitis, the most common form of eczema. Kolar’s research aims to uncover new therapies for atopic dermatitis by investigating how enzymes and lipids in the skin are disrupted in disease.

“Lipids are critical for our skin’s barrier function—they protect our skin and help prevent infection and disease,” explained Kolar. “We know that there are strong associations between enzymes, or proteins, and the development of eczema. However, which of these enzymes directly regulate skin lipids and how they become disrupted in atopic dermatitis remains unclear.”

Kolar will develop a new, innovative  chemoproteomics platform, Profiling of Active Cutaneous Enzymes (PACE) to identify irregular enzymes observed in atopic dermatitis. PACE in combination with global lipidomics, will be used to analyze samples from both human patients and animal models to  determine how enzymatic changes alter the skin’s lipid composition. The ultimate goal is to uncover novel drug targets that could help restore a healthy lipid barrier in affected skin.

Kolar’s study builds upon his training in the Medical Scientist Training Program, the School of Medicine’s joint M.D./Ph.D. program, and his research in UC San Diego’s dermatology residency program. As a Ph.D. student at the Salk Institute, he characterized novel bioactive lipids and their roles in disease using chemical biology and lipidomics approaches.

“Current treatments for atopic dermatitis primarily target inflammation and the immune system,” said Kolar. “Studying enzymes and lipids at the interface of dermatology and chemical biology offers a new perspective for understanding and treating skin disease. This award will allow me to develop innovative tools to reveal how lipids and enzymes shape skin health, ultimately paving the way for new treatments for atopic dermatitis and other common skin diseases.”

Established in 2011, the NIH Director’s Early Independence Award accelerates early career scientists into an independent research career. As part of NIH’s High-Risk, High-Reward Research program, this award supports promising, newly graduated scientists who demonstrate the intellect, creativity and drive to bypass the traditional post‑doctoral training period to establish independent research programs.