BME Students and Researchers Earn Prestigious AHA Fellowships

It has been a fruitful spring for Biomedical Engineering at The Ohio State University! Four of the department’s top scholars have earned American Heart Association fellowships to support their research efforts:

• Jacob Bender, a PhD candidate collaborating in the research lab of Dr. Orlando Simonetti, has also earned an American Heart Association pre-doctoral fellowship. His project, titled "Breath-Held 7D PC-MIR – Clinically Feasible Quantification of Peak Velocity" will involve collaboration in Dr. Simonetti's research space. The proposed research is to develop a rapid acquisition phase contrast MRI sequence for 7D velocity imaging to provide accurate quantification of velocity in all four heart valves simultaneously using parallel acceleration, a rapid echo planar readout, and novel methods of temporal resolution enhancement.
• Randy (Jimmy) Giedt, a PhD candidate conducting research under the guidance of Dr. Rita Alevriadou, is another recipient of the American Heart Association pre-doctoral fellowship. His focus on endothelial mitochondrial oxidative stress has led to his current PhD research involving mitochondrial morphology changes under different mechanochemical environments. Technology poster division. The AHA fellowship ($23K for 1 yr) will provide him with the opportunity to investigate the role of mitochondrial dynamics in the context of atherosclerosis, an area of investigation that is open for new discoveries.
• Dr. Yan Huang, a post-doctoral researcher working in Dr. Samir Ghadiali's laboratory, has been awarded an American Heart Association post-doctoral fellowship. The two-year award supports her project titled, "Role of MicroRNAs in Regulating Mechanically Induced Inflammation in the Pulmonary Epithelium." During her fellowship, Dr. Huang will collaborate in the research labs of both Dr. Ghadiali, his sponsor, and Dr. Patrick Nana-Sinkam, her co-mentor. Her focus will be on using both in-vitro and in-vivo models of lung injury to explore the novel hypothesis that mechanical forces in the lung influence microRNA expressions, and that the targeting of specific microRNAs can be used to mitigate lung inflammation.
• Natalia Higuita-Castro, a PhD candidate also conducting research in Dr. Ghadiali's lab, has been awarded an American Heart Association pre-doctoral fellowship. Entitled "Novel Micro-Nano Biomimetic System for Studying Injury Mechanisms of Lung Epithelium and Microvascular Endothelium," Natalia's two-year project will involve work in the labs of both Dr. Ghadiali and Dr. Derek Hansford, her co-mentor. Natalia will focus on using micro/nano technologies to both model the alveolar-capillary barrier in-vitro and investigate the biomechanical and inflammatory mechanisms responsible for lung injury during mechanical ventilation.

Congratulations to Jacob, Jimmy, Yan, and Natalia!