Funded R01 on supravalvaular aortic stenosis

A new R01 grant titled “Investigating altered smooth muscle cell mechanotransduction as a cause for supravalvular aortic stenosis” has been funded by the NHLBI! The research will address the hypothesis that aortic stenosis in supravalvular aortic stenosis is caused by altered smooth muscle cell mechanotransduction when enough elastin is not laid down to stiffen the aortic wall and prevent increased smooth muscle cell strain as stress increases with development. Increased smooth muscle cell strain causes overexpression/activation of Piezo2, leading to increased intracellular calcium, translocation of YAP/TAZ, and Ctgf transcription that causes smooth muscle cell phenotype modulation and contributes to stenosis. We are looking for PhD students and postdocs interested in working on this project.