Cardiovascular Biology | Research Interests

Name	Email	PhD Program
Miller, Colette WEBSITE EMAIL PUBLICATIONS	PHD PROGRAM Toxicology RESEARCH INTEREST Cardiovascular Biology, Cardiovascular Disease, Developmental Biology, Epigenetics & Chromatin Biology, Genomics, Metabolism, Molecular Biology, Molecular Mechanisms of Disease, Physiology, Pulmonary Research, Toxicology	Our research investigates the effects of air pollutants on maternal health, paternal health, and the health of their children. Through the use of genomics, metabolomics, and proteomics, we investigate the molecular underpinnings of diseases following exposures to pollutants during sensitive life stages. We have broad interests across many tissue systems and diseases relevant to fertility and pregnancy. Our work also explores the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease hypothesis, investigating risks of metabolic diseases in offspring following maternal or paternal exposures to pollutants.
Zhang, Weiwei EMAIL	PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST Cardiovascular Biology, Drug Discovery, Genomics	“My research interests involve investigating the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases using methods such as single-cell sequencing, metabolomics, and transcriptomics to identify potential intervention targets for mitigating the progression of these diseases.”
Wang, Xing EMAIL	PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST Cardiovascular Biology, Immunology, Neurobiology, Stem Cells	“I am fascinated by the field of stem cell biology. The great potential and ground-breaking findings it presents motivate me to further investigate the mechanisms of how stem cells communicate with their environment and how they integrate signals to differentiate.”
Henley, Trevor EMAIL	PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST Cardiovascular Biology, Cell Biology, Developmental Biology	“I’m very interested in how cells handle ions in order to create different membrane potentials. I’m trying to look at this through the context of heart development, and cellular biology.”
Dutton, Josh EMAIL	PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST Cardiovascular Biology, Pathology, Translational Medicine	“I am interested in pursuing hematology, the pathology of blood diseases, and how that information can be applied to a clinical setting. Blood provides a very unique intersection of many research focuses, and I hope to research the complex pathways behind specific blood diseases.”
Azizoglu, Berfin WEBSITE EMAIL PUBLICATIONS	PHD PROGRAM Cell Biology & Physiology RESEARCH INTEREST Cardiovascular Biology, Cell Biology, Developmental Biology, Disease, Neurobiology, Regenerative Medicine, Stem Cells	Our lab studies body-wide control of organ growth and regeneration. The mammalian body is reticulated by blood vessels and neurons. How these networks communicate with organ cells to orchestrate local and body-wide decisions is obscure. We study this question with a focus on the mouse liver, the uniquely regenerative visceral organ. Current projects in the lab include 1-researching the role of a novel vascular progenitor network in liver regeneration, 2-determining the mechanisms of injury perception by liver innervation, and 3-in vitro assembly of reticulated, responsive liver tissue.
Leiderman, Karin WEBSITE EMAIL PUBLICATIONS	PHD PROGRAM Biochemistry & Biophysics, Bioinformatics & Computational Biology RESEARCH INTEREST Biophysics, Cardiovascular Biology, Cell Signaling, Computational Biology, Enzymology, Hematology, Pharmacology, Quantitative Biology, Systems Biology	I am a mathematical biologist interested in the biochemical and biophysical aspects of blood clotting and emergent behavior in biological fluid-structure interaction problems. I especially love mathematical modeling, where creativity, biological knowledge, and mathematical insight meet. My goal is to use mathematical and computational modeling as a tool to learn something new about a biological system, not just to simply match model output to experimental data. My research paradigm includes an integration of mathematical and experimental approaches, together with statistical analyses and inference, to determine mechanisms underlying complex biological phenomena. This paradigm culminates in the contextualization of my findings to both the mathematical and biological communities. My research program is focused mainly on studying the influence of biochemical and biophysical mechanisms on blood coagulation, clot formation, and bleeding.
Edwards, Whitney EMAIL PUBLICATIONS	PHD PROGRAM Cell Biology & Physiology RESEARCH INTEREST Cardiovascular Biology, Cardiovascular Disease, Cell Biology, Cell Signaling, Developmental Biology, Developmental Disorders, Disease, Genetic Basis of Disease, Metabolism, Molecular Biology, Molecular Mechanisms of Disease	Our lab aims to identify the fundamental molecular mechanisms underlying heart development and congenital heart disease. Our multifaceted approach includes primary cardiac cell culture, genetic mouse models, biochemical/molecular studies, and transcriptomics. Additionally, we employ proteomics-based methods to investigate 1) protein expression dynamics, 2) protein interaction networks, and 3) post-translational modifications (PTMs) in heart development. Current research projects focus on investigating the function of two essential PTMs in cardiogenesis: protein prenylation and palmitoylation.
Kim, Boa WEBSITE EMAIL PUBLICATIONS	PHD PROGRAM Cell Biology & Physiology, Pathobiology & Translational Science RESEARCH INTEREST Cardiovascular Biology, Cardiovascular Disease, Cell Biology, Metabolism, Microscopy, Molecular Mechanisms of Disease, Physiology	Endothelial cells, which comprise the innermost wall of all blood vessels, are involved in a broad range of metabolic and cardiovascular diseases that represent a global challenge with high morbidity. Endothelial cell metabolism is an active process, and altered endothelial metabolism drive disease progression. The research in my lab focuses on the molecular mechanisms of endothelial cell metabolism and how they affect cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
Maeda, Nobuyo EMAIL PUBLICATIONS	PHD PROGRAM Genetics & Molecular Biology, Nutrition, Pathobiology & Translational Science RESEARCH INTEREST Cardiovascular Biology, Genetics, Metabolism, Pathology, Translational Medicine	Overall goal of our research is to gain better knowledge of gene-gene and gene-environment interactions in common cardiovascular conditions in humans. We have been modifying mouse genome in such a way that resulting mice can model quantitative variations of a specific gene product that occur in human population. With these mice, we explore causes, mechanisms, and nutritional treatments of cardiovascular complications resulted from common conditions such as diabetes, lung infections, and pregnancy-associated hypertension. Current focus is on the oxidative stress and effects of vitamin B12 as antioxidant and beyond.

Research Interest: Cardiovascular Biology