Nystoriak Lab

The Nystoriak Laboratory seeks to understand how genetic and environmental factors interact to determine susceptibility to ischemic heart disease. Our research explores the molecular and physiological mechanisms that regulate blood flow to the heart under both healthy and diseased conditions, with the long-term goal of developing therapies that preserve myocardial perfusion, improve cardiac function, and improve cardiovascular health.

News From The Nystoriak Lab

MMRI Recruits New Associate Professor to Utica from University of Louisville

Matthew Nystoriak, Ph.D., has been recruited to Utica and named associate professor of biomedical research and translational medicine at MMRI. In this role, Nystoriak will spearhead a laboratory dedicated to coronary blood flow and cardiovascular medicine.

Areas of Investigation

Their research is driven by a central question: Why do some individuals lose the ability to appropriately match blood flow to the heart’s metabolic demands? By understanding how genetic variation and environmental influences—including aging, physical activity, sleep, nutrition, and metabolic health—shape this process, they aim to develop precision therapies that improve cardiovascular health across the lifespan.

The lab combines experimental and computational approaches spanning molecular biology, physiology, pharmacology, and cardiovascular imaging to address longstanding questions in cardiovascular science. By integrating in silico modeling with in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo experimentation, our laboratory uncovers mechanisms across multiple levels of biological organization—from protein structure to whole-organ physiology—and translates these discoveries into new therapeutic strategies.

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Lab Focus

Coronary Microvascular Function and Ischemic Heart Disease

The Nystoriak lab investigates how coronary resistance vessels sense changes in myocardial metabolism and regulate blood flow to meet the energetic demands of the heart. Their work seeks to define the mechanisms underlying coronary microvascular dysfunction and identify therapeutic strategies to restore myocardial perfusion in ischemic heart disease.

Gene–Environment Interactions in Cardiovascular Disease

Cardiovascular health is shaped by complex interactions between inherited biology and environmental influences. The lab studies how aging, physical activity, sleep, nutrition, obesity, and metabolic health remodel the coronary circulation and influence an individual’s ability to maintain cardiovascular function throughout life.

The lab's goal is to identify the mechanisms that promote cardiovascular resilience—preserving myocardial perfusion, exercise capacity, and physical function as we age. By understanding why some individuals remain healthy while others become vulnerable to cardiovascular disease, they aim to develop personalized strategies that promote healthy aging and improve quality of life in later years.

Precision Cardiovascular Therapeutics

The Nystoriak lab discovers and validates molecular targets that regulate coronary blood flow and cardiac metabolism. By integrating computational modeling, structural biology, pharmacology, and physiology, the team is developing next-generation therapies for ischemic heart diseases.

How They Do it

Complex cardiovascular diseases cannot be understood through a single experimental approach. The laboratory integrates complementary methodologies that bridge molecular mechanisms and whole-organ physiology to answer longstanding questions in cardiovascular science.

Their research combines:

In vitro molecular, biochemical, and cellular approaches to investigate signaling pathways, protein function, and drug mechanisms.
Ex vivo studies of isolated coronary resistance arteries and cardiac tissues to define mechanisms controlling vascular tone, metabolism, and myocardial perfusion.
In vivo imaging and physiological studies to evaluate myocardial perfusion, cardiac function, metabolism, and exercise performance in clinically relevant models of cardiovascular disease.
In silico computational biology, molecular dynamics simulations, structural modeling, and data science to identify molecular mechanisms and therapeutic opportunities.

By integrating discoveries across these complementary platforms, they translate fundamental biology into innovative therapeutic strategies.

Meet Dr. Matt Nystoriak

Associate Professor of Biomedical Research and Translational Medicine

mnystoriak@mmri.edu

Dr. Nystoriak earned his bachelor’s degree in biology and his Ph.D. in pharmacology at the University of Vermont, College of Medicine in Burlington, Vermont. He then went on to complete his postdoctoral training at the University of Washington and University of California, Davis. Prior to joining MMRI, Nystoriak was an associate professor of Medicine at the University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky, in the Center for Cardiometabolic Science. His research has been published in several prestigious scientific journals, including Circulation Research, Nature Communications, Science Signaling and the Journal of Physiology. Nystoriak has also been an invited speaker at several prominent scientific gatherings, including the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions, the American Physiology Summit, the UC Davis Cardiovascular Symposium and the World Congress for Microcirculation.

Lab Members

Shreyoshi Chakraborti, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Chakraborti completed her doctorate at Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, with a focus on biochemistry and multi-omics-based approaches to understanding lipid metabolism in drug-resistant tuberculosis infections. While at MMRI, she will focus on molecular dynamics simulation studies of ion channels and investigate biochemical aspects of ion channel pathophysiology.

Julio Silva-Neto, Pharm.D., M.SC., Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Silva-Neto completed his undergraduate studies at the Federal University of Sergipe, Sergipe, Brazil. He holds a Master's degree in Pharmacology from the Federal University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil and Ph.D. training in Pharmacology at the University of São Paulo in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil. Silva-Neto previously held a position as a Postdoctoral Fellow in Duke University School of Medicine.

Past Members

Bhargav Ramesh, 2015-2019
Zachary Wohl, 2016-2020
Linda Harrison, 2016-2018
Mayeesha Ahmed, 2016
Ernesto Pena Calderin, 2016-2018
Marc Dwenger, 2017-2021/2023-2024
Sean Raph, 2018-2022
Xuemei Hu, 2018-2023
Li Luo, 2019-2024
Shannon Green, 2021-2022
Kara Gouwens, 2022-2024
Brennan Aboud-Hall, 2023
Caitlin Wilkerson, 2023-2024
Ning Chen, 2023-2024
Nikita Shah, 2024-2025
Alice Bukrinsky, MD, 2024-2025
Cooper Borelli, Summer 2025
Emma Burke, Summer 2025
Martin Ezeani, 2025-2026
Olivia Kalil, Summer 2026

Publications

Gouwens, KR, Nong, Y, Hill, BG, Nystoriak, MA. Thermal environment and light exposure shape sleep-associated metabolic and thermoregulatory rhythms. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2026;331(4):R623-R632. doi: 10.1152/ajpregu.00061.2026. PubMed PMID:42728207 .
Kucera, C, Ramalingam, AR, Raph, SM, Paily, R, Srivastava, S, Lorkiewicz, PK et al.. Influence of Cooling Agents on the Arrhythmogenic and Autonomic Effects of Electronic Cigarettes in an in vivo Model. Circ Arrhythm Electrophysiol. 2026;19(6):e014253. doi: 10.1161/CIRCEP.125.014253. PubMed PMID:42290371 PubMed Central PMC13271165.
Marchianò, S, Martín-Aragón Baudel, M, Smith, CER, Hernandez, GH, Bers, DM, Boyle, PM et al.. Translating cardiovascular ion channel and Ca²⁺ signalling mechanisms into therapeutic insights. J Physiol. 2026;:. doi: 10.1113/JP290180. PubMed PMID:41605640 PubMed Central PMC12883149.
Gouwens, KR, Nong, Y, Chen, N, Schulman-Geltzer, EB, Collins, HE, Hill, BG et al.. Correction to: Myocardial Hyperemia via Cardiomyocyte Catabolism of β-Hydroxybutyrate. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2026;46(2):e000193. doi: 10.1161/ATV.0000000000000193. PubMed PMID:41564161 .
Gouwens, KR, Pena Calderin, E, Okhiria, J, Nguyen, DC, Schulman-Geltzer, EB, Martinez-Ondaro, Y et al.. Correction to: Cardiac Ketone Body Oxidation Enhances Exercise Performance. Circ Res. 2025;137(8):e176. doi: 10.1161/RES.0000000000000732. PubMed PMID:40997156 .
Challa, AA, Hill, BG, Nystoriak, MA, Gouwens, KR, Kalra, DK. Ketone Bodies in Cardiovascular Disease: The Vasculature as a Therapeutic Target. JACC Basic Transl Sci. 2025;10(8):101328. doi: 10.1016/j.jacbts.2025.101328. PubMed PMID:40680507 PubMed Central PMC12296504.

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Chase Kessinger, Ph.D.

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Why does the research the Nystoriak Lab is doing matter?

Ischemic heart disease remains the leading cause of death worldwide. While atherosclerotic disease is a major contributor, many patients experience myocardial ischemia despite having little or no blockage of the large coronary arteries. Coronary mircrobascular dysfunction is increasingly recognized as an important driver of conditions such as INOCA, MINOCA, and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), yet effective therapies remain limited.

Our research seeks to define the molecular mechanisms that regulate coronary blood flow and identify new strategies to restore myocardial perfusion in patients with cardiovascular disease.

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