News

The University of Kentucky Saha Cardiovascular Research Center has selected four students committed to futures in cardiovascular health as the recipients of the 2015 Saha Awards for Cardiovascular Research and Education. Second-year University of Kentucky medical student Kristin Andres earned the 2015 recipient of the medical student honor.

Fibroblast Angiotensin II Type 1a Receptors Contribute to Angiotensin II–Induced Medial Hyperplasia in the Ascending Aorta

Aruna Poduri, Debra L. Rateri, Deborah A. Howatt, Anju Balakrishnan, Jessica J. Moorleghen,

Lisa A. Cassis, Alan Daugherty

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) recently awarded a $750,000 grant to University of Kentucky researcher Fredrick Onono to study the potential link between obesity and breast cancer. Obese women are four times more likely to develop treatment-resistant breast cancer, but the exact mechanism for this observation is still largely a mystery.

 RCT is a multiorgan pathway that facilitates the removal of excess cholesterol from the body and this homeostatic pathway is conserved across a wide range of organisms 6, 7, 8,

The Saha Cardiovascular Research Center would like to congratulate Dr. Moriel Vandsburger for his newly awarded NIH grant! The National Institutes of Health will fund this project till 2020, in the amount of $376,250 a year. Dr. Vandsburger’s lab concentrates on developing novel MRI techniques to research heart failure, and investigate regeneration at the cellular and molecular level. His new project focuses on using this technique to improve clinical practices in patients with renal failure.

The Saha Cardiovascular Research Center would like to congratulate the following 2015 Saha award recipients:

Saha Award for University of Kentucky Medical Students- Kristin Andres

Saha Award for University of Kentucky Nursing Students- Jennifer Miller

Saha Award for Eastern Kentucky Nursing Students- Jennifers Akers

Paula Fritz RN Award for Patient Education- Sooksai Kaewbua

The University of Kentucky’s fifth annual Barnstable Brown Obesity and Diabetes Research Day was held on May 20 at the Albert B. Chandler Hospital Pavilion A.

Since 2011, the event has focused on current findings in obesity and diabetes research and features presentations by nationally prominent physician-scientists as well as the work of regional researchers and UK students, postdoctoral fellows and faculty chosen from abstract submissions.

Registration is now open for the 24th Annual South East Lipid Research Conference. 

The 18th Annual Gill Heart Institute Cardiovascular Research Day is scheduled for October 2, 2015.  The event will take place at the Lexington Convention Center.  This year, the event is thrilled to host Gary Gibbons, MD as Keynote Speaker.  Dr. Gibbons is Director of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute at the National Institute of Health.  Our Featured Speakers will include Peter Tontonoz, MD, PhD from UCLA and Mike Synder, PhD from Stanford University. 

Mueller, P.; Ye, S.; Morris, A.; Smyth, S.S.  Lysophospholipid mediators in the vasculature.  Experimental cell research  2015 [PubMed Link] | [Full Text]

Introduction

Thompson, J.C.; Jayne, C.; Thompson, J.; Wilson, P.G.; Yoder, M.H.; Webb, N.; Tannock, L.R.A brief elevation of serum amyloid A is sufficient to increase atherosclerosis.Journal of lipid research562

Prabha Nagareddy, PhD, was recently notified as a finalist for the American Heart Association Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology Irvine H. Page Young Investigator Research Award. The award is given to new investigators in arteriosclerosis and vascular biology. The award recognizes investigators in the formative years of their careers who have the potential to become future leaders in cardiovascular research. Dr.

Binggang Xiang, PhD, core faculty of the Saha Cardiovascular Research Center was recently notified as a finalist for the American Heart Association Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology Kenneth M. Brinkhous Young Investigator Prize in Thrombosis. The award recognizes outstanding endeavors by new investigators in fundamental and applied research in thrombosis including the mechanism, detection, treatment, and prevention of thrombotic disorders. Dr.

Paul Mueller recently received the American Heart Association Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology Travel Award for Young Investigators. The $1000 award will be used to attend the ATVB|PVD 2015 Scientific Sessions in San Francisco in May. The award is distributed to a select number of young investigators based on the score of a submitted abstract.

A postdoctoral position is available immediately at the University of Kentucky to study the molecular mechanisms of metabolic disorders and atherosclerosis.  Our laboratory mainly focuses on the role of NF-kB (J Exp Med, 2014; Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol, 2012) and nuclear receptor PXR (Environ Health Perspect, 2012; Mol Pharmacol, 2013; JAHA 2014; Mol Endocrinol, 2015) in the pathogenesis of obesity and cardiovascular disease.  More details can be found at the following webpage: http://pharmns.med.uky.edu/use

Yipeng Sui from Changcheng Zhou’s laboratory recently received the American Heart Association Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology Travel Award for Young Investigators. The $1000 award will be used to attend the ATVB|PVD 2015 Scientific Sessions in San Francisco in May. The award is distributed to a select number of young investigators based on the score of a submitted abstract. Yipeng’s abstract is entitled “Intestinal Pregnane X Receptor Links Xenobiotic Exposure And Hypercholesterolemia”.

The 2015 Saha Awards application process is now open. 

The application process will close on Monday, June 1, 2015.

Xiang-An Li, Ph.D., of the University of Kentucky Saha Cardiovascular Research Center and Department of Pediatrics, has been awarded a $3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study synthetic HDL (sHDL) as a potential therapy for sepsis. Sepsis -- also called septicemia -- is a life-threatening condition caused by an overwhelming immune response to infection. Immune chemicals released by the body into the bloodstream to fight the infection trigger widespread inflammation that can damage multiple organ systems.

In 2013, as part of the Diabetes and Obesity Research Day at UK, the inaugural Fred and Marcielle de Beer Award was awarded to the de Beer’s for their contributions to the development of the Barnstable Brown Diabetes and Obesity Research Center (BBDOC) and for their long-standing research accomplishments at the University of Kentucky.  The 2014 recipient was Dr. Lisa Cassis.

 

 

Friday, February 6 is National Wear Red Day. 

Wear Red
In recognition of National Wear Red Day, Go Red for Women
asks that men and women GO RED by wearing red, living a healthy lifestyle and spreading the message
that heart diseaese is killing our mothers, daughters, sisters and friends.