Role of cardiac myofibroblasts in fibrosis within human hearts

Title of Project

Role of cardiac myofibroblasts in fibrosis within human hearts

Name of Advisor/s

Dr Lisa Chilton, Dr Robert Kinobe and Dr Pankaj Saxena

College

College of Public Health, Medical & Veterinary Science

Summary of Project

Fibrosis is the pathological deposition of connective tissue within the extracellular matrix of the heart. It is associated with cardiac dysrhythmias including atrial fibrillation, reduced oxygen supply to the working muscle, and mechanical problems such as diastolic heart failure. The extracellular matrix is maintained by cells called fibroblasts, which in a wounded situation, transform into myofibroblasts. Pathological fibrosis is believed dependent on abnormal activation and persistence of myofibroblasts. We propose to use samples of human atria and ventricle to correlate the degree of fibrosis to the presence of myofibroblasts, and to explore the underlying signalling which may lead to fibrosis.

Key Words

cardiac, fibrosis, fibroblast, myofibroblast, human

Would suit an applicant who

is interested in biomedicine, both pure, mechanistic research and more translational human research