Wu Lab Awarded $3.1 Million NIH Grant to Advance Research on Severe Congenital Heart Disease at MMRI

Masonic Medical Research Institute (MMRI) is pleased to announce that Tongbin Wu, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Biomedical Research and Translational Medicine, has been awarded a four-year, $3.1 million R01 research grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to investigate the underlying causes of hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), one of the most severe and life-threatening congenital heart defects.

HLHS is a rare condition in which the left side of the heart does not develop properly before birth, leaving the heart unable to pump oxygen-rich blood efficiently throughout the body. Although surgical advances have improved survival, children born with HLHS often require multiple complex procedures during infancy and remain at risk for lifelong complications. Despite decades of research, scientists still do not fully understand why the disease occurs, limiting the ability to develop new treatment options.

Dr. Wu’s research focuses on myelin regulatory factor (MYRF), a gene recently linked to HLHS. His laboratory has discovered that MYRF plays an important role in heart development. Building on these findings, this NIH-funded project will investigate how changes in MYRF disrupt normal heart formation and contribute to HLHS.

Using advanced genomic, molecular, and cellular approaches, the research team will create a comprehensive map of the biological changes that occur when MYRF function is disrupted. These insights could identify new targets for therapies that improve outcomes for children born with HLHS.

“Understanding why the left ventricle fails to develop properly is essential for designing interventions that could one day correct these defects before birth,” said Dr. Wu. “This funding will allow us to identify the molecular events that go wrong in HLHS and point the way toward new therapeutic targets.”

The project will also generate valuable datasets that will be made available to the broader scientific community, providing a resource for researchers studying congenital heart disease and accelerating future discoveries.

“NIH R01 awards are among the most prestigious and competitive forms of federal research funding, recognizing scientific excellence and supporting innovative projects with the potential to transform human health,” said Maria I. Kontaridis, Ph.D., Executive Director and Gordon K. Moe Professor and Chair of Biomedical Research and Translational Medicine and Director of Research at MMRI. “This award is a testament to Dr. Wu’s outstanding scientific vision and the important work being conducted at MMRI to better understand congenital heart disease.”