Caterina Gallippi joined UNC-Chapel Hill in 2005 and is now the William R. Kenan, Jr. Distinguished Professor in the Lampe Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering at UNC-Chapel Hill and NC State.  She also serves as associate chair for research and directs the NIH T32 training program in Unified Medical Ultrasound Technology Development (UNMUTED).

Her work advances ultrasound-based approaches to monitor a range of conditions, including musculoskeletal disorders, kidney disease, and breast cancer.

What brought you to Carolina?

I came to North Carolina to pursue a PhD in biomedical engineering, with a focus on medical imaging. I chose Duke University because of the opportunity to work with Gregg Trahey, whose leadership in medical ultrasound shaped my research interests and drew me into the field. 

After completing my degree, my husband and I chose to remain in the state because we loved the Triangle — the proximity to both mountains and coast, the climate, and the strength of the local community — and couldn’t imagine building our lives elsewhere.

Just before graduating, I received an NIH SBIR Phase I grant and spent a year leading development and early commercialization of a novel ultrasound method through a startup I founded. Although the company is no longer active, it provided invaluable experience in innovation, translation, and leadership.

That experience, combined with my focus on medical imaging at a time when the UNC Biomedical Research Imaging Center was just beginning to form, strengthened my candidacy. I was fortunate to become a member of the biomedical engineering faculty in Chapel Hill.

How has your role here changed over the years?

My role has evolved substantially since I started as an assistant professor. While my lab’s core focus remains ultrasound elasticity imaging — a noninvasive method for measuring tissue stiffness and fluid thickness — our research has expanded from a narrow focus on stroke risk to a broad portfolio spanning musculoskeletal disorders, kidney disease, and breast cancer.

Early on, I focused on building clinical collaborations. I searched NIH databases for UNC-Chapel Hill researchers using ultrasound and reached out directly. That approach led to a key connection that helped secure my first major grants, which focused on imaging plaque build-up in the carotid arteries to assess stroke risk.

From there, my research expanded significantly. My lab extended our methods to study a variety of muscular conditions and began applying ultrasound to kidney transplantation to develop early indicators of graft health.

At the same time, my responsibilities have expanded into leadership and service. I’ve served as director of graduate studies, where I led a program review and curricular updates, and I now direct the UNMUTED NIH T32 training program. I am also stepping into the role of associate chair for research.

Beyond Carolina, I’m active in the IEEE Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and Frequency Control Society and will serve as general co-chair of the 2026 IEEE International Ultrasonics Symposium in Raleigh.

I also founded the Ultrasound Research Association of North Carolina, which now connects 17 labs across multiple universities and includes more than 100 trainees. It has grown into a highly collaborative regional ecosystem — and to my knowledge, there is no comparable concentration of ultrasound expertise in the U.S.

What’s kept you at Carolina?

Several things. The research community here is uniquely collaborative, and my work has benefited from colleagues across disciplines who are generous with their expertise. We also have outstanding students and postdoctoral scholars. Working with them and helping launch their careers is incredibly rewarding.

Carolina also invests in research infrastructure and resources. Just as importantly, the work produced here has a real impact — improving lives in North Carolina and beyond. That combination of collaboration, talent, and impact is hard to find anywhere else.

What contribution are you most proud of?

I’m proud of both my trainees and our research. Mentoring graduate students in my lab has been especially meaningful — helping them grow into confident, independent investigators is incredibly rewarding.

Through the NIH T32 program, I’m also proud to help create an environment that trains students not just to invent new ultrasound technologies, but to translate them into clinical use and, ultimately, bring them to patients.

At the same time, I’m proud of the technologies my group has developed and advanced into clinical research. These tools have the potential to improve how diseases are detected and monitored. I also hope that sharing this work has helped spark new ideas across the engineering and clinical communities.

What is a uniquely Carolina experience you’ve had?

As a Duke graduate, I never imagined I’d be cheering for the Tar Heels — but that’s been one of the many pleasant surprises of being here. I’ve enjoyed supporting Carolina, whether watching games at home or attending events on campus. I also appreciate the everyday moments, like walking to the Old Well and sitting under the shade of a big oak tree. When my kids were younger, weekends often included trips to Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, followed by a stop on Franklin Street. Those experiences, big and small, have made Carolina feel like home.