DRC member, Ryan Boudreau was awarded a five-year, $1.9M NIH R01 grant. The funding will support his further investigation of the cardiovascular effects of a genetic variant in SCN5A, the gene that encodes the Nav1.5 sodium channel that provides the required electrical activity to initiate each heartbeat. Previously, Boudreau’s lab, found that this variant is linked to decreased Nav1.5 levels in human hearts and worse heart failure outcomes.
Boudreau hypothesizes that Nav1.5 may influence cardiac metabolism and oxidative stress, and his lab would not be able to discover the underlying mechanisms with NIH support.
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