Wanda O’Neal

Dr. Wanda O’Neal is a Professor in the Department of Genetics and Medicine at the UNC School of Medicine. She leads the Molecular Biology and Mouse Core, supporting research in molecular genetics, mouse model development, and CFTR-related studies. Her research focuses on cystic fibrosis (CF) pathogenesis, mucin biology, and COPD mechanisms. She is affiliated with the Marsico Lung Institute and collaborates on large-scale studies like SPIROMICS and PreCISE. She holds grants from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for projects on hypoxia signaling in CF lung disease.

Education: PhD in Human and Molecular Genetics from Baylor College of Medicine (1993), postdoctoral training in gene transfer for CF. She has extensive experience in viral vectors, mouse models, and CRISPR/Cas9 technologies.

Research interests include CF modifiers, airway biology, and translational therapies. She chairs the Biomarkers Working Group in SPIROMICS and the Quality Control group in PreCISE asthma studies. The Molecular Biology Core she directs has supported over 100 publications and NIH/NHLBI grants.

Her recent work includes studies on mucus hyperconcentration, CFTR modulators, and COPD biomarkers. She collaborates internationally on genetic and proteomic analyses of lung diseases.

Labs/Teams: Molecular Biology and Mouse Core (UNC), SPIROMICS biomarker team, PreCISE asthma network. She leads initiatives in lung imaging and biomarker development.