New approaches to target heart calcium channels
Investigating Cardiac Ion Channels by Novel Methods
This work develops new ways to change calcium channels in heart cells to try to improve pumping and reduce dangerous heart rhythms for people with heart failure.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Columbia University Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11246101 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If I have heart failure, this research looks at how the body's stress signals make heart cells work harder and sometimes cause dangerous rhythms. The team is focusing on proteins that control calcium entry into heart muscle cells—especially a regulator called Rad—and how adding or removing chemical tags changes its control of calcium channels. They use lab experiments to pinpoint the exact molecular steps that let calcium flow more safely, with the goal of finding drug targets. Over time this could guide new treatments that boost heart strength without the arrhythmia risks of older drugs.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults aged 21 and older with heart failure and/or a history or risk of arrhythmias would be the most relevant group for future therapies from this research.
Not a fit: People without heart disease or those needing immediate intravenous inotropic support are unlikely to benefit directly from this basic/translational work in the near term.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could point to safer therapies that improve heart pumping while lowering the risk of life-threatening arrhythmias.
How similar studies have performed: Lab studies targeting calcium handling have shown promising mechanistic results, but past drugs that boosted calcium entry in patients increased risk, so clinical benefit remains unproven.
Where this research is happening
New York, United States
- Columbia University Health Sciences — New York, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Marx, Steven O — Columbia University Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Marx, Steven O
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.