Assistant Member, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
Glenn Foundation for Medical Research and AFAR Grants for Junior Faculty - 2022
What inspired you to pursue aging research?
During my PhD rotation, I saw the statistics on how different risk factors affect the prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD). I was surprised by how much aging increases CVD risk compared to other traditional risk factors. After looking into the literatures, I realized how little is known about molecular mechanisms of cardiac aging and how aging predisposes the heart to CVD. This inspired me to pursue cardiac aging research to fill this huge knowledge gap.
In your view, what does AFAR mean to the field, and what does it mean for you to receive an AFAR grant now?
AFAR is a leading national organization that supports biomedical research on aging. AFAR offers funding opportunities for scientists at different career levels. For many scientists in the field, the funding supports from AFAR help launch their careers in aging research. In my view, AFAR is an invaluable resource to the aging research field. Receiving an AFAR junior faculty grant now will help my lab build the foundation of a new research direction to study the role of mitochondrial NAD+ metabolism in cardiac aging.
What is exciting about your research’s potential impact?
NAD+ levels decline with age and strategies for NAD+ boosting protect against age-related diseases. NAD+ is subcellularly compartmentalized but age-related changes in NAD+ levels in different compartments remain elusive. Mitochondrial NAD+ (mNAD+) is essential for energy metabolism and cell survival. This study will examine the age-related regulation of mNAD+ levels and determine the mechanism of mNAD+ depletion in cardiac aging. The result of this study will facilitate future therapeutic development to boost mNAD+ levels and treat cardiac aging.
How would you describe your research to a non-scientist?
Continuous pumping and refilling of the heart require a lot of energy from metabolism, which becomes broken during aging. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) is a cofactor that is essential for energy generation in the powerhouse of the cell, named mitochondria. In this study, we will investigate how the levels of NAD+ in the mitochondria are regulated. The results of this study will identify new targets to enhance energy metabolism and improve heart function of older adults.
