How right‑heart muscle and collagen fibers change with pressure overload and affect heart chamber coordination
What triggers RV Fiber Re-Orientation in response to RV pressure overload, and what is its Consequence on Inter-Ventricular Decoupling?
This project looks at how extra pressure in the lungs changes the alignment of muscle and collagen fibers in the right side of the heart and how that affects how the left and right sides of the heart work together in people with pulmonary hypertension.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Colorado Denver NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Aurora, UNITED STATES) |
| Project ID | NIH-11257315 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
This project will combine heart images from children with pulmonary hypertension, mouse models that recreate right‑sided pressure overload, and computer simulations of the two‑chamber heart to learn how muscle and collagen fibers re‑orient under stress. The team will measure left‑ventricular torsion, right‑ventricular pumping (ejection), and tissue fiber structure after surgically increasing pressure in mice and after paired interventions that change left‑ventricular loading. Computer models will test whether changing left‑ventricular motion or fiber orientation can restore right‑ventricular function.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People with pulmonary hypertension who show right‑ventricular dysfunction — including pediatric patients with reduced left‑ventricular torsion or low right‑ventricular ejection — would be most relevant to this work.
Not a fit: Patients without right‑sided pressure overload or whose heart problems are driven primarily by other causes (for example isolated left‑sided heart disease) may not see direct benefit from these findings.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could point to new ways to help the failing right ventricle in pulmonary hypertension, for example by targeting fiber structure or left‑ventricular motion to improve right‑heart pumping.
How similar studies have performed: Prior imaging and animal studies have hinted that left‑ventricular torsion affects right‑ventricular performance, but targeting fiber orientation as a therapeutic approach is relatively new and not yet proven in humans.
Where this research is happening
Aurora, UNITED STATES
- University of Colorado Denver — Aurora, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kheyfets, Vitaly — University of Colorado Denver
- Study coordinator: Kheyfets, Vitaly
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.