Cardiovascular & Blood Biology Faculty

Our research focuses on mechanisms of wave propagation and fibrillation using a combination of experimental, clinical, and numerical approaches with the aim of better understanding of acute and chronic atrial fibrillation as well as ventricular fibrillation.  Current projects in Dr. Berenfeld's laboratory include:1. Dynamics of Impulse Propagation and Reentrant Activity.2. Mechanisms of Atrial Fibrillation.  3. Mapping of Cardiac Fibrillation.  4. Biophysical Mechanisms in Two Inherited Cardiac Diseases.

The long-term goal of Dr. Chen's laboratory is to stimulate bench-to-bedside research that sheds light on molecular mechanisms underlying the development and progression of diabetes-induced cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Discoveries from innovative and multi-disciplinary projects will reveal novel and effective intervention strategies to prevent and treat diabetes and CVD. In the past 15 years, Dr. Chen's laboratory has made a series of significant contributions to our understanding of the role of PPARgamma activation as a determinant of vascular cell gene expression and cellular function and has been among the first to begin to define the role of PPARdelta activation in the cardiovascular system. In addition, the discovery of the high affinity physiological PPARgamma ligands, nitroalkene derivatives of linoleic acid (LNO2) and oleic acid (OA-NO2), advances our understanding of endogenous PPARgamma modulation and provides novel therapeutic strategies for treating diabetes and CVD.

The Michele laboratory focuses on the mechanisms of muscular dystrophy and cardiomyopathies associated with mutations in the transmembrane dystrophin-glycoprotein complex and abnormal glycosylation of the central protein in this complex, dystroglycan.  The cellular mechanism of dystroglycan modification, and the resulting pathways leading to muscular dystrophy and cardiomyopathy are currently unclear.  Our laboratory is currently exploring these mechanisms using spontaneous mutant, traditional and conditional targeted mouse models in vivo, and studying the effects on skeletal muscle function and cardiac myocyte biology in vitro.

Dr. Michele is NOT accepting fellows for Summer 2023.

In the Shavit laboratory we perform “clinically directed basic research” in the field of hemostatic and thrombotic disorders. Patients with deficiencies of particular blood coagulation factors are often labeled with bleeding or clotting disorders, yet often have no phenotype. On the other hand there are patients with phenotypes out of proportion to their laboratory clotting factor profile. Thus we are often unable to predict an individual patient's risk with any useful degree of accuracy. Our goal is the identification of genes that modify blood clotting factors and their phenotypic expression. Knowledge of such modifier genes will improve diagnosis and classification of blood coagulation disorders, identify potential targets for therapy, and further our understanding of the underlying biology of hemostasis and thrombosis. In order to achieve these goals, we are developing zebrafish models of human blood clotting disorders.