Student research project
Supervisors: Dr Yow Keat Tham and Professor Peter Meikle
Description
Heart attacks (myocardial infarction; MI) remain a leading cause of global mortality. Heart attacks cause ischemic damage that arise from the reduction of blood flow to the heart, resulting in cell death. While the most effective clinical intervention for MI is to allow for the prompt restoration of blood flow (reperfusion) via stenting or vessel bypass grafting, this often resulting in additional heart damage caused when blood supply returns to the heart tissue. Collectively this is termed ischemia reperfusion (IR) injury. There are no current therapies to address this, highlighting an urgent need for novel treatments that reduce damage and enhance recovery.
Innovative therapeutics via plasmalogen enhancement: at the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute, our research is pioneering the therapeutic modulation of plasmalogens — a unique class of protective lipids. Plasmalogens have potent antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties, which we believe can significantly reduce cardiac damage from IR injury. This project leverages cutting-edge lipidomics, proteomics, and advanced preclinical models to explore this potential breakthrough.
Research objectives
1. Evaluate cardioprotective effects
- Examine how dietary plasmalogen enhancement reduces heart injury after ischemia-reperfusion events in mouse models.
2. Explore underlying mechanisms
- Investigate how plasmalogen supplementation influences inflammation, immune cell activity, mitochondrial function, and oxidative stress.
Your role and opportunities
You will actively participate in groundbreaking research aimed at transforming how we mitigate cardiac IR injury. You will:
- Conduct experiments using animal models of cardiac IR injury.
- Learn and apply sophisticated laboratory techniques including lipidomics, flow cytometry, histology, mitochondrial function assays, and microscopy.
- Gain experience in data analysis and interpretation in lipidomics, proteomics, echocardiocardiography and providing skills highly sought-after in both academia and industry.
- Contribute to publications and present your findings at scientific conferences, boosting your research profile.
Why choose this project?
Transformative impact
Your research will directly contribute to developing new therapeutic strategies that could significantly reduce the burden of heart attacks worldwide.
Skill development
Receive comprehensive training in advanced techniques that are pivotal in modern biomedical research.
Multidisciplinary collaboration
Join a dynamic and supportive team within a leading research institute, benefiting from robust mentorship and extensive collaborative networks.
Ideal candidate
We seek enthusiastic, motivated students passionate about biomedical research and keen to make meaningful contributions to cardiovascular health. Ideal candidates will demonstrate strong analytical skills, dedication to scientific inquiry, and an eagerness to learn advanced laboratory and analytical techniques.
This project is suitable for a PhD or Masters students.
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