The future of cardiovascular research is beating strong at University of Houston (UH) laboratories, where 15 undergraduate students spent the summer gaining paid hands-on experience, learning from expert mentors and contributing to research aimed at advancing heart health.
Funded by the American Heart Association and the National Institutes of Health, respectively, the UH-Houston Experience for Advancing Research and Training (UH-HEART) and the UH-Cardiovascular Undergraduate Research Experience (UH-CURE) programs culminated in a successful showing of student research at various conferences. Among these were the American Heart Association’s Basic Cardiovascular Sciences (BCVS) Scientific Sessions July 13-16 in Boston; the UH College of Pharmacy (UHCOP) PPS Research Symposium; and the end-of-year presentations. Both UH-HEART and UH-CURE programs are directed by UHCOP Professor and Assistant Chair of the Department of Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences Bradley McConnell, Ph.D., FAHA.
Connecting with the Cardiovascular Research Community
The AHA conference connected the participants with approximately 60 undergraduate cardiovascular researchers from across the country. Alongside students conducting summer research at 11 universities and research institutions, they presented their findings through poster sessions, answering questions and discussing their work with attendees and judges.
“Even though people attended with varying levels of experience and expertise, the sessions felt approachable and welcoming,” said Jenevieve Lopez, UH-CURE participant from Occidental College in Los Angeles. “I was able to learn from highly scientific presentations while still finding talks that were relevant and accessible to me as an undergraduate researcher.”
Participants also attended scientific lectures and early-career development sessions as well as an the exclusive “Lunch with the Legends” event, gaining career guidance and mentorship through small-group conversations with distinguished scientists and physicians.
“The conference helped me realize that presenting research is not just about explaining results but also learning from the questions and ideas of others,” said Nishi Modi, UH-HEART participant from University of Texas at Arlington.
The UH-CURE participants and their research presentations were:
- Katarina Dobrosky, Wake Forest University, “Membrane-Associated Transcription Factor MYRF Regulates Epicardial Cell Migration to Drive Cardiac Dysfunction and Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome”
- Oscar Garza, The University of Texas at Austin, “Talin: Integrin Activation and Disruption”
- Erin He, Rice University, “TAK1 Regulates Multiple Oncogenic Signaling Pathways and Mitochondrial Stress Responses in Rhabdomyosarcoma”
- Ali Irhabi, University of Houston, “STEMIN- and YAP5SA-Induced Exosomes as a Therapeutic Strategy to Block Cell Death in Failing Hearts”
- Ethan Liu, Case Western Reserve University, “Comparative Characterization of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Endothelial Cells with Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells”
- Jenevieve Lopez, Occidental College, “Investigating the Effect of AKAP12 Upregulation on AKAP5 in Cardiac β-Adrenergic Signaling”
- Camila Leonor Madera Ruiz, Universidad de Puerto Rico en Ponce, “Cardiovascular Drug Repurposing to Prevent BTK Inhibitor-Induced Endothelial Dysfunction”
- John Nguyen, Texas A&M University (College Station), “Aptamer-Conjugated Polymers for Targeting Cardiovascular Disease”
- Bailey Perry, Howard University, “Impact of Antipsychotics on Cardiovascular Outcomes Among Older Adults with Dementia”
- Esther Umezurike-Chukwu, Case Western Reserve University, “Effects of Prior LPS Exposure on Adipose Macrophage Inflammation and Diabetes Risk”
The UH-HEART participants and their research presentations were:
- Adam Alubaidi, University of Houston, “Determining the Molecular Changes in Mice Hearts After a Single Bout of Treadmill Running”
- Allison Ding, Rice University, “Developing Optimized Bioprinting Techniques for Cardiac Tissue Chip Applications”
- Elaine Liu, The University of Texas at Dallas, “Development and Characterization of a Tantalum-Loaded Self-Assembling Peptide Hydrogel for Endovascular Embolization”
- Nishi Modi, University of Texas at Arlington, “HSL Inhibition Affects Oleic Acid-Induced Lipid Droplet Accumulation in Mouse Cardiac Endothelial Cells”
- Anna Toombs, Tougaloo College, “Investigating BAF60a’s Role in Endothelial Cell Dysfunction”
National recognition
Ethan Liu and Nguyen earned first and fourth place awards for their posters, while UH received an AHA Institutional Award for Undergraduate Student Training for the UH-HEART program, which provided additional support to its participants.
McConnell and the UH-HEART/UH-CURE undergraduates were also joined at the AHA meeting by UHCOP's Ying Xu, Ph.D. candidate, and Luqi Zhao, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow, who received BCVS New Investigator Travel Awards to present posters at the meeting. Xu's project was on "Compartmentalized cAMP Dysregulation by the AKAP12-PDE8A Axis Drives Electrical Remodeling and Heart Failure” and Zhao's project was on "Pathogenesis of acquired left ventricle non-compaction."
In addition to the AHA meeting, UH-HEART and UH-CURE undergraduates also presented their research July 31 at UHCOP, which concluded both summer research programs, and some were able to also present at the annual PPS Research Symposium hosted by UHCOP's Department of Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences Aug. 13-14.
“It was an honor to mentor these 15 outstanding undergraduate researchers,” McConnell said. “Our cohort included talented students from UH, universities across Texas, and institutions nationwide. Their projects spanned basic, translational, and applied sciences, as well as population-based research, highlighting the breadth of cardiovascular research conducted across UH faculty laboratories.”