Grant: Operating Grant

Heart failure is a major cause of death worldwide and occurs as a consequence of a number of diseases related to the heart or to the blood vessels. A common condition that can lead to heart failure is abnormal heart muscle growth. We have identified a new pathway that contributes to abnormal heart growth as well as found a drug that can rescue this pathway and prevent this condition. In addition to the direct effects on the heart, this pathway also contributes to elevated blood pressure. As a result, we will perform pre-clinical studies using rats and mice to determine how this drug alters the aforementioned pathways to prevent a rise in blood pressure and abnormal heart growth. Since abnormal heart growth and high blood pressure are major risk factors for the development of a number of other heart related illnesses, understanding how our newly identified pathway is involved in these diseases will contribute significantly to understanding abnormal heart growth and high blood pressure. In addition, studying how our drug regulates this pathway to prevent these diseases could one day lead to this drug being used clinically.