Understanding arginylation, a protein change important for heart health

Development and Application of Chemical Biology Approaches for Understanding Protein Arginylation

['FUNDING_R01'] · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · NIH-11263610

Researchers will make chemical tools to find and map a small protein change called arginylation in human heart tissue to help people with heart conditions.

Quick facts

Phase['FUNDING_R01']
Study typeNih_funding
SexAll
SponsorWASHINGTON UNIVERSITY (nih funded)
Locations1 site (SAINT LOUIS, UNITED STATES)
Trial IDNIH-11263610 on ClinicalTrials.gov

What this research studies

If you have a heart condition or have donated heart tissue, this project aims to find tiny chemical changes on heart proteins called arginylation and homoarginylation. The team will build a chemical proteomics platform to enrich and identify these modification sites and apply it to cultured heart cells and clinical human heart samples. They will use labeled homoarginine to trace where that amino acid gets added and to measure related metabolites in heart samples. The work is meant to reveal protein sites and pathways that could matter for heart development and disease.

Who could benefit from this research

Good fit: People with heart disease who can provide surgical or biopsy heart tissue samples would be most directly involved in and benefit from this work.

Not a fit: Patients without heart conditions or who cannot provide tissue samples are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this laboratory-focused research.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, this could reveal new protein changes and biomarkers in heart disease that point to better diagnosis or new treatment targets.

How similar studies have performed: This area is largely understudied: a few methods have proposed arginylation sites, but comprehensive chemical proteomics of the heart and mapping of homoarginylation is novel.

Where this research is happening

SAINT LOUIS, UNITED STATES

Researchers

About this research

  1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
  2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
  3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.

View on NIH RePORTER →

Last reviewed 2026-05-15 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.