高等研究院学术讲座十一

Initiation and Intervention of Atherosclerosis: from Epigenetics to Stent Design

Dr. Jiang Yizhou, Ph.D.
University of Wisconsin-Madison

About the speaker

Dr. Jiang studies and works with distinguished and interdisciplinary scientists on the field of biomedical research. He utilizes cutting-edge approaches to reveal the fundamental mechanisms underlying cardiovascular diseases that threaten millions people's lives. His research helps us better understand the initiation, progression and intervention of atherosclerosis.

Talk Introduction

Atherosclerosis can create life-threatening blockages of blood vessels in heart (heart attack) and brain (stroke). The distribution of atherosclerotic lesions has been linked to the blood vessel geometry that causes the disturbed flow (DF). In the absence of disease, the endothelium at DF nevertheless expresses pro-inflammatory genes that collectively sensitize it to the initiation of atherosclerosis, a pre-pathological state of stress adaptation to the local hemodynamic environment. Regulatory mechanisms that link DF to the susceptible endothelial phenotype include inhibition of anti-inflammatory Kruppel-like Factor 4 (KLF4) by DF. We found DF induces methylation of KLF4 promoter, the fingerprint of a potent epigenetic suppression mechanism. Using endothelial cells, animal model and controlled flow environments in vitro, we show that DF-induced KLF4 hypermethylation is a dynamic epigenomic response with pro-atherogenic consequences. This analysis of flow-related epigenomic plasticity of an atheroprotective gene is representative of a broader adaptive epigenomic response to environmental conditions.

时间: 2015年1月6日 下午14:00-15:00

地点: 办公楼207会议室

All are welcome！