We are thrilled to announce that our collaboration with our colleague, developmental cardiobiologist, Dr. Chulan Kwon, has been selected for funding from the U.S. Department of Defense. The project explores understudied sequelae of Down Syndrome gene dosage leading to septal defects that cannot be inferred from genomic or transcriptomic data alone. We use the tools of proteomics to probe differences in post-translational modification, altered splicing, novel microproteins, and protein interactors of specific ion channels in the dorsal mesenchymal protrusion derived from the second heart field.

With the award of an R01 grant from the National Institutes of Health we are excited to begin a deep dive into understanding precisely how Vitamin A (retinol) is converted to all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) in the adult mammalian heart and how retinoid metabolism becomes discombobulated in the setting of heart failure (see Research tab). These studies extend our longstanding collaboration with Dr. Maureen Kane (co-PI), of the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy.