Jeffrey J. Saucerman, PhD
UVA biomedical engineering professor Jeff Saucerman, PhD, and his collaborator Jen Davis, PhD, at the University of Washington, have received an interdisciplinary $2.9 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to investigate how fibrosis—scar tissue formation that impairs organ function—develops after heart attacks and skin injuries.
Nearly 800,000 Americans are affected by myocardial infarction each year, which causes scarring and fibrosis not directly targeted by existing therapies. Anti-fibrotic therapies also remain a challenge across organs and cancers in part due to the enormous complexity of the underlying biology.
“This new project focuses on a promising molecular target, TRPC6, and how it drives the transformation of fibroblasts into scar-producing myofibroblasts,” stated Dr. Saucerman.
To tackle the challenge of scar tissue formation, Dr. Saucerman’s team is developing a mechanistic AI method that integrates large-scale genetic and protein interaction data to build and validate detailed models of cellular signaling. This approach is being used with Dr. Davis’s proteomic screens to identify novel fibrotic pathways, which are validated experimentally in mice and human cells. The research findings could pave the way for new therapeutic strategies to prevent or reverse fibrosis, offering hope for millions affected by heart disease and chronic wounds.
Read more about Dr. Saucerman’s research using computational modeling to discover molecular networks and drugs that control cardiac remodeling.
Filed Under: Research