New imaging tools and treatments for aortic valve calcification
Official title: Molecular imaging and therapy in aortic valve calcification
Funded at VA Connecticut Healthcare System · NIH-11213917 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers are creating molecular imaging scans and testing treatments aimed at finding and slowing aortic valve calcification in people with or at risk for aortic stenosis.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | VA Connecticut Healthcare System NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (West Haven, United States) |
| Project start | October 1, 2023 |
| Project end | September 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| NIH project number | 5I01BX006089-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11213917 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with early-stage aortic valve calcification or mild-to-moderate aortic stenosis would be the most likely candidates for related clinical testing.
✕Less likely to help
Patients with severe, end-stage valve calcification already needing urgent valve replacement are less likely to benefit from these early-stage imaging and therapy developments.
What this research studies
This project is developing molecular imaging tracers that can see biological changes in the aortic valve, especially processes that lead to calcification. The team will use animal models and existing human tissue and gene-expression data to validate tracers that target enzymes like MMP-12 and to track valve disease over time. They will combine molecular imaging with structural scans to spot early disease activity and to monitor how candidate therapies affect valve biology. The work aims to find targets and imaging tools that could guide treatments to slow or reverse valve calcification.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could enable earlier detection of active valve disease and support treatments that slow or reverse calcification, potentially delaying or avoiding valve replacement.
How similar studies have gone: Medical drug trials for calcific aortic valve disease have largely failed, but molecular imaging and the MMP-12 target are new directions with promising preliminary lab and animal data that remain unproven in humans.
Where this research is happening
-
VA Connecticut Healthcare System
West Haven, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Sadeghi, Mehran M — VA Connecticut Healthcare System
- Study coordinator: Sadeghi, Mehran M
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.