Metabolic Biology Laboratory
Chasing signaling mechanisms that alter cardiac and systemic metabolic pathways in health and disease

Our research investigates transcriptional regulation mechanisms that link cardiac stress with altered myocardial fatty acid and glucose metabolism. Our long-term goal pertains to the application of interventions that can improve cardiac function by modulating fatty acid oxidation and energy production.

We are interested in the role of Kruppel-like factors (KLFs) and particularly, KLF5 and its role in the regulation of cardiac fatty acid oxidation during diabetes, myocardial ischemia, ischemia/reperfusion and aging. We also investigate the role of cardiomyocyte KLF5 in regulating systemic metabolism via an undiscovered cross-talk mechanism between the heart and the adipose tissue.

Furthermore, we study the role of the cellular energetic machinery in the alleviation of cardiomyopathy in sepsis.