Cardiac complications of dystrophin deficiency in female carriers
This NIH funding supports the work of Asuka Eguchi, Assistant Professor of Physiology and Biophysics and Biomedical Engineering, and a CIRC Affiliate, to gain an understanding of how mothers of Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients may be susceptible to cardiac complications. She will investigate how X-linked diseases can manifest differently in females depending on the makeup of healthy and diseased cells.
More information on the Eguchi Lab can be found here: Eguchi Lab
Discovering the Future: CIRC Undergrads Present at UCI Research Symposium!
The UC Irvine campus buzzed with excitement from May 12 to 16, 2025, as the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) hosted its annual Undergraduate Research Symposium. This year’s event, themed “Discovering the Future Together,” showcased the remarkable research and creative activities of hundreds of UCI undergraduates. The week-long symposium featured diverse presentations, panel discussions, and interactive sessions, highlighting the breadth and depth of undergraduate research at UCI. We are particularly proud to announce that our CIRC and BME undergraduates performed exceptionally well! We extend our heartfelt congratulations to all student presenters and our sincere thanks to everyone who attended and supported this showcase of UCI’s commitment to undergraduate research and academic excellence.
Grosberg and Liu Lab – Collaboration Feature!
Exciting news from the CIRC! The Grosberg lab and Liu Lab, have joined forces in a groundbreaking collaboration featured in the APL Bioengineering journal. Their innovative immuno-heart chip explores the intricate interactions between cardiac and immune cells, shedding light on how these interactions influence heart structure and function under stress. This cutting-edge research advances in vitro heart repair studies. The success of the Grosberg and Liu labs demonstrates our centers commitment to pioneering research that has the potential to transform cardiovascular care and improve lives.
We congratulate both teams on this remarkable achievement and look forward to the future advancements this research will inspire! To check out the article, please visit: https://pubs.aip.org/aip/apb or https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40322069/
Dr. Pim Oomen Receives AHA Grant!
Center faculty, Dr. Pim Oomen has been awarded the Career Development Award from the American Heart Association. The $231,000 three-year grant will support Dr. Oomen’s innovative work in understanding the crucial differences in how male and female hearts respond to diseases and treatments, with a focus on the roles of estradiol and testosterone. Please join us in congratulating Dr. Oomen. His work exemplifies UCI’s commitment to cutting-edge research and improving health therapies.
To learn more, please visit: https://engineering.uci.edu/news/2025/4/new-grant-funds-study-sex-hormones-impact-heart
Refining the Gold Standard for Assessing Heart Function
Dr. Naomi Chesler and graduate student, Christopher Lechuga, along with collaborators from the University of Wisconsin, have made a significant breakthrough in heart function assessment. Their study, published in the Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation, compares two volume calibration methods for measuring right ventricular pressure-volume loops. To read the full article, please visit the SSoE news & events webpage.
Dr. Paul G. Yock receives Presidential Honor
Dr. Paul G. Yock, former member of the CIRC Leadership Council receives the National Medal of Technology and Innovation. To read the full article, please visit:
Happy New Year from the CIRC
As we welcome a new year, the Edwards Lifesciences Foundation Cardiovascular Innovation and Research Center (CIRC) reflects on a year of remarkable achievements. We look forward to additional growth and excellence in 2025.
