How extra nuclei affect adult heart muscle cells
Elucidating the Role of Multinuclearity in Healthy and Diseased Mammalian Cardiomyocytes
This work looks at how having multiple nuclei in adult heart muscle cells influences heart function and could help people with heart failure.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Univ of North Carolina Chapel Hill NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chapel Hill, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11248373 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You will hear about researchers using new single-cell methods to study whole, mature heart muscle cells, including human samples, to see how different nuclei shape cell behavior. They compare whole-cell RNA profiles to older nuclei-only data to look for a ‘nuclear code’ that may explain why some cells grow, survive, or die. The team uses high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics to map nuclear differences and link them to measures of cell health. Results aim to point to biological processes that could be targeted to protect heart muscle cells.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults with heart disease or heart failure who can provide consent for tissue or biospecimen donation or who are treated at participating hospitals would be the most relevant candidates.
Not a fit: People without heart disease, children, or those seeking immediate therapy are unlikely to get direct, short-term benefits from this lab-focused research.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could reveal new biological targets to protect or repair heart muscle cells and lead to better treatments for heart failure.
How similar studies have performed: Previous studies using isolated nuclei provided important clues, but whole-cell single-cell RNA sequencing of mature cardiomyocytes is a newer approach and still early in proving clinical impact.
Where this research is happening
Chapel Hill, United States
- Univ of North Carolina Chapel Hill — Chapel Hill, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Rau, Christoph Daniel — Univ of North Carolina Chapel Hill
- Study coordinator: Rau, Christoph Daniel
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.