Investigating the role of autophagy in cardiomyocytes during heart development
In the UK 12 babies a day are diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, a condition or defect that develops in the womb before a baby is born. The causes underlying this wide range of conditions are not yet well understood. Many different factors control how cells grow and move to the correct position in the embryonic heart, any one of which can go wrong. In this project, Dr Helen Phillips and her team will study the role of one of these control systems, called autophagy. Autophagy takes place inside our cells, to dismantle and dispose of old or redundant molecules. As a cell develops, the structures inside it need to change and autophagy is important to get rid of old ‘equipment’ and make way for new one. However, little is known about the details of this process in the normal and defective development of the heart. The researchers will unpick the molecular signals that control autophagy in developing heart cells. They will study heart cell development in mice carrying genetic faults that cause either excess or lack of autophagy. They hope that by identifying how autophagy works in the developing heart, they will able to intervene when it goes wrong.
Project details
| Grant amount | £302,402 |
|---|---|
| Grant type | Project Grants |
| Application type | Project Grant |
| Start Date | 01 February 2017 |
| Duration | 3 years |
| Reference | PG/16/105/32659 |
| Status | In Progress |
