Joe Lab News and Announcements

Xue Mei is the recipient of a travel award from the University of Mississippi Medical Center Cardio-Renal Research Center (CRRC) Graduate Student Research Symposium being held in October. Besides all expenses covered, Mei is to receive a monetary award! Congratulations!

One of our recent manuscripts on a single microbiota being beneficial for kidney disease has been accepted for publication in Circulation Research (Impact factor 17.36). Faecalibacterium prausnitzii attenuates CKD via butyrate-renal GPR43 axis
Hong-Bao Li^1,*^,+, Meng-Lu Xu^2,+, Xu-Dong Xu^{3, +}, Yu-Yan Tang^3,+,Hong-Li Jiang⁴, Lu Li²,Wen-Jie Xia¹,Nan Cui⁵, Juan Bai⁶, Zhi-Ming Dai⁷, Bei Han⁸, Ying Li¹, Bo Peng¹, Yuan-Yuan Dong¹, Sachin Aryal⁹, Ishan Manandhar⁹, Mahmoud Ali Eladawi¹⁰, Rammohan Shukla¹⁰, Yu-Ming Kang¹*, Bina Joe^9,*, Tao Yang^9,*

Hats off to Ms. Blair Mell!

Blair received the UTCOMLS Dean’s Award for Staff Impact for 2022.

There will be a Faculty and Staff Recognition Dinner on Wednesday, November 9th at the Belmont Country Club and a monetary award; her picture will hang on the honoree wall located on the first floor of Mulford Library.

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Leah Stevenson! Leah is a trainee from Dr. Bina Joe's lab and today she successfully defended her thesis, "Investigation of the Gut Microbiome using Machine Learning as a diagnostic aid for Food Allergies". Leah started at UT in the Fall of 2017 and graduated with her Bachelor’s of Science and a minor in Chemistry in Spring 2021. She participated in the Pipeline program here which allowed her to take part of her master’s curriculum in her senior year of her undergrad degree. After she graduates, she will be working at ProMedica as an Investigator Initiated Research Project Coordinator working with General Surgeons.

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe! The editorial board of Hypertension has invited her to serve another two years and she has accepted. Her term will expire December 31, 2024.

Congratulations to Xue Mei and team! Their article has been selected for APSselect https://journals.physiology.org/apsselect, a collection from APS showcasing some of the best recently published articles in physiological research. Well done!

Congratulations to Xue Mei! Mei is one of Dr. Bina Joe's trainees and her work was published in The Blade.

See here for full article:
UT researchers discover link between mouth, skin bacteria and regulation of blood pressure | The Blade (toledoblade.com)

Dr. Bina Joe has been elected as the President of the Association of Medical School Pharmacology Chairs (AMSPC). This organization is comprised of members that are current and emeritus chairs of medical school pharmacology departments in Canada and the U.S. Dr. Joe was in Charlottesville, VA as an invited speaker of the 2022 APS/ASN Control of Renal Function in Health and Disease conference. The session she took part of is titled, "New sensing & signaling pathways in the control of renal function."

For more information about this meeting please visit the site listed here:
Control of Renal Function in Health and Disease Conference | American Physiological Society (physiology.org)Kudos to Dr. Charles Thodeti on the exciting news that his proposal, "Endothelial Autophagy in Cardiac Remodeling" submitted to AHA-Transformational Project Award (TPA) has received 1.82% and will be funded. Well done!

Congratulations to Xue Mei! Her work on skin microbiota was highlighted by Science Mission. Enjoy the content here:
Skin Microbiota Are Associated with Hypertension in Rats – Science Mission

Move over-Gut Microbiota! A one-of-a-kind study on hypertension by Xue Mei, a graduate student in Dr.Joe's lab, has earned a lot of attention. Check out the press release on an article she first authored. Congrats Mei! Move Over, Gut Microbiota—Skin and Mouth Bacteria May Help Regulate Blood Pressure Too | American Physiological Society (physiology.org)

We are pleased to share this article about the creation of a unique high school research course and UT researchers' roles in it. The inside cover (pictured) tells the beginning of the story. Although not pictured, the continued work of several of our trainees and faculty to keep up this excellent outreach activity over the years is much appreciated. See the link for the entire edition of Ursidae: Research at Ottawa Hills, Issue 1: Volume 1. 2022 Ursidae Issue 1 Vol 1.pdf - Google Drive

Congratulations to Ms. Leah Stevenson! She is a student in the Joe lab who graduated May 20th with a Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences. (Pictured here with Sachin Aryal and Ishan Manandhar). Her dissertation work is focused on identifying gut microbiota signatures in food allergies. Stay tuned for information on her upcoming defense.

Dr. Bina Joe has been selected as the Association of Chairs of Departments of Physiology (ACDP) 2022 Guyton Award Lecturer, based on her contributions to the field of Physiology. The lecture will be in Marathon Key, FL where she will receive an honorarium and plaque. Congrats!

Congratulations to Xue Mei on her first first-authored publication from the Joe Lab!
Title: Beyond the Gastrointestinal Tract: Oral and sex-Specific Skin Microbiota Are Associated With Hypertension in Rats With Genetic Disparities
Journal: Physiological Genomics
Impact factor: 3.107
Authors: Xue Mei, Blair Mell, Xi Cheng, Ji-Youn Yeo, Tao Yang, Nathaline Chiu, Bina Joe

A collaborated work from the University of Toledo (Department of Physiology and Pharmacology College of Medicine, Department of Medicinal and Biological Chemistry College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences) and the University of Florida.
Title: Identification of a gut commensal that compromises the blood pressure-lowering effect of ester angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors
Journal: Hypertension
Impact factor: 10.19
Authors: Tao Yang, Xue Mei, Ethel Tackie-Yarboi, Millicent Tambari Akere, Jun Kyoung, Blair Mell, Ji-Youn Yeo, Xi Cheng, Jasenka Zubcevic, Elaine M. Richards, Carl J. Pepine, Mohan K. Raizada, Isaac T. Schiefer, Bina Joe

Congratulations, Xue Mei! Her abstract to the Canadian Hypertension Congress (CHC) has been selected for oral presentation. Her talk is scheduled May 6th, during the session titled, "Comprehensive assessment of plant bioactives for cardiometaboloic disorders." Well done!

Congrats to Dr. Bina Joe! She was selected as one of the recipients of the University of Toledo's 2022 Outstanding Advisor Award.

A manuscript on environmental sciences with machine learning of fish gut microbiota as reporters of their aquatic environments in Lake Erie and the Caribbean is accepted for publication in Physiological Genomics. This is the result of collaborative work between many laboratories of our Department.

Gut Microbiota of Wild Fish as Reporters of Compromised Aquatic Environments Sleuthed through Machine Learning.

John Turner, Dr. Xi Cheng, Nilanjana Saferin, Dr. Ji-Youn Yeo, Dr. Tao Yang, Prof. Bina Joe

A word of great appreciation to all the faculty and students who attended and presented their research work at the Experimental Biology meeting held in Philadelphia last week. Dr. Sailaja Paruchuri, Dr. Jasenka Zubcevic and myself lead three different sessions. Drs. Charles Thodeti, Dr. Jasenka Zubcevic and Dr. Tao Yang were invited speakers for the American Physiological Society (APS). Dr. Lauren Koch lead the trainee session of the Pre-meeting of the Physiological Genomics Group. Dr. Elliott Dirr from Dr. Zubcevic’s laboratory and Ms. Xue Mei from my laboratory also presented invited talks. Finally, I was awarded the Ernest Starling Distinguished Lecturership of the APS. Congratulations to all for their excellence at this important meeting pertinent to our Department. Next year, the various societies will hold their own meetings and the APS meeting, called as the American Physiological Summit will be held at Long Beach, California.

Dr. Bina Joe was elected to serve a three year term as Councilor of the Association of Chairs of Departments of Physiology (ACDP). Congratulations!

This is an editorial that Dr. Bina Joe had the privilege to write along with Dr. Kent E. Vrana. It is a reflection of teaching pharmacology in medical schools, published by the ASPET Publication- The Pharmacologist
https://issuu.com/aspetpublications/docs/march_2022_tpharm_final/2?ff

Dr. Bina Joe has been asked to participate in National Library Week (April 3-9, 2022). In 1985, the American Library Association created "READ" - a poster campaign featuring celebrities posing with their favorite books. She has been asked to take part in the poster campaign for UT along with others from around the University. Just like the READ campaign, they will be posing with their favorite books. The posters selected will be displayed in both Carlson and Mulford Libraries.

A hearty congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang! He was recently approved to serve on the Topical Advisory Panel of the journal Antioxidants.

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang whose recent NIH R21 application received a 7% percentile and an impact score of 28! Well done!

As part of our sustained outreach efforts, several of our faculty, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students served as Judges for the Ottawa Hills High School Science Fair. Thanks to all those who participated!

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe and colleagues! Their manuscript was accepted for publication by AJP-Heart and Circulatory Physiology!

AJP-Heart and Circulatory Physiology 2022 Feb 11. Low dose 1,3-butanediol reverses age-associated vascular dysfunction independent of ketone body β-hydroxybutyrate.

Cameron G McCarthy, Emily W Waigi , Beng San Yeoh, Blair Mell, Matam Vijay-Kumar, Camilla F Wenceslau, Bina Joe

A manuscript Dr. Tao Yang and Dr. Bina Joe worked on with their collaborators from the University of Florida, has been accepted for publication in Pulmonary Circulation.

"Fecal matter transplant from Ace2 overexpressing mice counteracts chronic hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension."

Aline C. Oliveira,Tao Yang,Jing Li,Ravindra K. Sharma,Marianthi K. Karas,Andrew J. Bryant,Annette D. de Kloet,Eric G. Krause,Bina Joe,Elaine M. Richards,Mohan K. Raizada
DOI: 10.1002/pul2.12015

View the entire article here: Fecal matter transplant from Ace2 overexpressing mice counteracts chronic hypoxia‐induced pulmonary hypertension - Oliveira - 2022 - Pulmonary Circulation - Wiley Online Library

Congratulations to Ahmed Abokor! He is a trainee of Dr. Matam Vijay-Kumar and his article was published in The Blade.

https://www.toledoblade.com/a-e/culture/2022/01/03/ahmed-abokor-ut-research-explores-how-breast-milk-protects-infants-from-early-life-diseases/stories/20220103003

The NHLBI website has published a short summary of the NIH workshop that Dr. Bina Joe was invited to attend in November, 2021. The summary is a reflection of areas for potential future funding considerations.
Click here to view:
Toward Precision Medicine: Circadian Rhythm of Blood Pressure and Chronotherapy for Hypertension | NHLBI, NIH

Dr. Bina Joe was featured as an invited International speaker at the HBPRCA meeting's symposium on Gut Microbiome and cadiovascular diseases. Other prominent international speakers include Prof Wilson Tang (Cleveland Clinic), Dr Annet Kirabo (Vanderbilt University College of Medicine), A/Prof Levi Waldron (City University of New York), and Prof Dominik Muller (Max-Delbrück-Center Berlin).

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang! He was chosen by the American Heart Association’s Council on Hypertension’s Trainee Advocacy Committee and Data Sciences International (DSI), as a finalist for the 2021 Stephanie Watts Career Development Award.

Well done!

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang! His abstract has been selected for a Moderated Poster Presentation at the Hypertension 2021 Virtual Scientific Sessions scheduled for September 27-29, 2021.

Dr. Bina Joe’s project titled, " A novel model to study COVID-19 and Hypertension” has been awarded an NIH grant from the R21 mechanism. Besides Blair Mell from our Department, other collaborators include Drs. Saurabh Chattopadhyay and Jason Huntley from the MMI Department.

Congratulations!

Aryal Sachin and Ishan Manandhar both successfully defended their Masters dissertations.

Congratulations!

Dr. Tao Yang has accepted our offer as Assistant Professor in the Basic Scientist Tenure Track in the Department.

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang! His abstract has been selected for a Moderated Poster Presentation at the Hypertension 2021 Virtual Scientific Sessions scheduled for September 27-29, 2021.

Congratulations!

Aryal Sachin and Ishan Manandhar both successfully defended their Masters dissertations.

Congratulations!

Dr. Bina Joe has been elected as a Board Member of the Greater Toledo Community Foundation. Click on the link for more information.https://www.toledocf.org/who-we-are/leadership-team/

Congratulations to Drs. Piu Saha and Tao Yang for securing the highly competitive Career Development Grants from the American Heart Association!

Dr. Tao Yang’s grant scored a 1.6 percentile and Dr. Saha’s 8 percentile, both in their first attempts. We are proud of their exceptional nationally competitive performance and success.

Dr. Bina Joe was invited to participate in the NHLBI/NIH workshop entitled “Toward Precision Medicine: Circadian Rhythm of Blood Pressure and Chronotherapy for Hypertension,” which will be held October 27 - 29, 2021. This will be a three half-day virtual workshop (12 pm – 4 pm EST).

The purpose of the workshop is to review the state of the current science and evidence for links between circadian rhythms in blood pressure regulation and chronotherapy for hypertension and identify research gaps and opportunities which are inhibiting progress in understanding these important connections. It is expected that the workshop participants will be involved in writing/contributing to an Executive Summary of the workshop, which will be published in a major journal in the field.

There will be six sessions in this workshop: (1) Phenotypic Manifestations of Circadian Rhythm of Blood Pressure, (2) Abnormal Circadian Rhythm of Blood Pressure, Target Organ Damage, and Disease, (3) Mechanisms Influencing Circadian Rhythm of Blood Pressure, (4) Additional Factors Associated with Circadian Rhythm of Blood Pressure, (5) Interventions, and (6) Breakout Sessions and Summary.

She was also invited to participate as a speaker for the forth session entitled “Additional Factors Associated with Circadian Rhythm of Blood Pressure” on Oct 28 (Thurs) and speak on the tentative topic of ‘Animal: Microbiome’.

A hearty congratulations to all of our students that graduated and won several awards! Amit, Emily, Ishan, Jonnelle, Moiz, Sarah and Sudipta: we are so proud of you! Jonnelle was selected to be the keynote speaker for the Multicultural Graduation Ceremony on May 6, 2021.

Congratulations to Dr. Xi Cheng! He has been appointed as an Associate Editor of Physiological Genomics. His term begins July 1st.

Drs. Lauren Koch, Matam Vijay-Kumar and Bina Joe were honored during an awards ceremony with President Gregory Postel during a reception for faculty who have demonstrated exceptional success in attracting external support for research and scholarship over the past three years.

Sachin Aryal and Ishan Manandhar have both been selected as the award recipients for Outstanding Achievement Award in Physiology, Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences Cafruny Award and Dr. Sarah Gala is the recipient of the Edward J. Cafruny Award for Excellence in Pharmacology. They will all be honored during the UTCOMLS graduation awards ceremony.

Congratulations to all!

Congratulations to Dr. Xi Cheng and team! Their manuscript was recently accepted for publication in Comprehensive Physiology.

Application of Artificial Intelligence in Cardiovascular Medicine
Xi Cheng #*,Ishan Manandhar #, Sachin Aryal #, Bina Joe *

Abstract
The advent of advances in machine learning (ML)-based techniques has popularized wide applications of artificial intelligence (AI) in various fields ranging from robotics to medicine. In recent years, there has been a surge in the application of AI to research in cardiovascular medicine, which is largely driven by the availability of large-scale clinical and multi-omics datasets. Such applications are providing a new perspective for a better understanding of cardiovascular disease (CVD), which could be used to develop novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. For example, studies have shown that ML has a substantial potential for early diagnosis of different types of CVD, prediction of adverse disease outcomes such as heart failure, and development of newer and personalized treatments. In this review, we provide an overview and discuss the current status of a wide range of AI applications, including machine learning, reinforcement learning and deep learning, in cardiovascular medicine.

Congratulations to Sachin Aryal from the Machine Learning Lab! He has been selected as one of the oral abstract presenters for CHC2021. Oral Presentation Topic: Sex-based Gut Microbiome Differences among People with or without Cardiovascular Disease

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe! She has been appointed to serve a three-year term on the Conference Committee of the APS. The term started on the 1st of this month.

Congratulations to Dr. Cameron McCarthy! He has been invited and has accepted to serve a two-year term as Vice-Chair on the HTN Trainee Advocacy Committee of the Council on Hypertension beginning in July.

Congratulations to Leah, Ishan, Sachin from the Machine Learning Lab! Their hackathon team won third prize in the ABCB/CDRL Hackathon 2021. The hackathon was an event of the UToledo Neurosciences Dept. The winners will be receiving $100 and certificates as a reward.

Well done!

Congratulations to Dr. Camilla Ferreira Wenceslau! She is the newest editorial board member of the APS's Physiological Reviews Early Career Editorial Board.

She also has been invited to speak in June for the Department of Physiology & Biophysics at the University of Mississippi Medical Center seminar series: “Microbiota are critical for vascular physiology".

Congratulations to Dr. Lauren G. Koch! She recently had a paper published in International Journal of Molecular Sciences in a special issue Molecular Mechanisms of Cerebrovascular Diseases (2021 Apr 26;22(9):4489) with collaborators at the University of Michigan Department of Neurosurgery.

Title: “Hydrocephalus Following Experimental Subarachnoid Hemorrhage in Rats with Different Aerobic Capacity.”

Yasunori Toyota 1 , Hajime Shishido 1 , Fenghui Ye 1 , Lauren G Koch 2 , Steven L Britton 3 , Hugh J L Garton 1 , Richard F Keep 1 , Guohua Xi 1 , Ya Hua 1

Abstract:
Low aerobic capacity is considered to be a risk factor for stroke, while the mechanisms underlying the phenomenon are still unclear. The current study looked into the impacts of different aerobic capacities on early brain injury in a subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) model using rats bred for high and low aerobic capacity (high-capacity runners, HCR; low-capacity runners, LCR). SAH was modeled with endovascular perforation in HCR and LCR rats. Twenty-four hours after SAH, the rats underwent behavioral testing and MRI, and were then euthanized. The brains were used to investigate ventricular wall damage, blood-brain barrier breakdown, oxidative stress, and hemoglobin scavenging. The LCR rats had worse SAH grades (p < 0.01), ventricular dilatation (p < 0.01), ventricular wall damage (p < 0.01), and behavioral scores (p < 0.01). The periventricular expression of HO-1 and CD163 was significantly increased in LCR rats (p < 0.01 each). CD163-positive cells were co-localized with HO-1-positive cells. The LCR rats had greater early brain injuries than HCR rats. The LCR rats had more serious SAH and extensive ventricular wall damage that evolved more frequently into hydrocephalus. This may reflect changes in iron handling and neuroinflammation.

Dr. Lauren Gerard Koch’s research and the low (LCR) and high (HCR) exercise capacity rats featured research news from the National Institute on Aging at NIH in article titled, “Mitochondrial health is linked to longer life in female rats with high exercise capacity.”

https://www.nia.nih.gov/news/mitochondrial-health-linked-longer-life-female-rats-high-exercise-capacity?utm_source=nia-eblast&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=news-20210426

Next month, Dr. Camilla Ferreira Wenceslau has been invited to present at the Robert M. Berne Cardiovascular Research Center (CVRC) seminar series: "Microbiota are critical for vascular physiology". University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA.

They have also invited her to give the 2021 Vascular Biology Lecture: “Vascular Sepsis”. The Robert M. Berne Cardiovascular Research Center (CVRC). University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA.

A hearty congratulations to Phys/Pharm joint faculty member, Dr. Beata Lecka-Czernik! She was selected to receive an Outstanding Faculty Research and Scholarship Award due to her "highly acclaimed research in diabetic bone disease and osteoporosis." The committee said that her work in bone physiology and function, and in particular her discoveries about the relation between thiazolidinediones and bone loss, have contributed to her success as a scholar at the University of Toledo.

The Outstanding Faculty Research and Scholarship Award recipients receive a monetary prize and a certificate of recognition. Well done!

Faculty members from the department are to be honored by President Gregory Postel, Provost Karen Bjorkman and Vice President of Research Frank Calzonetti at an upcoming reception. This is to recognize those who have demonstrated exceptional success in attracting external support for research and scholarship over the past three years. This is a select group of faculty members who have brought in significant external funding during this period.

Congratulations to Dr. Lauren Koch, Dr. Matam Vijay-Kumar and Dr. Bina Joe!

President Postel is also honoring faculty at a separate event for their Scholarly Productivity in Publications. Dr. Matam Vijay-Kumar is being honored at this event. So, double congratulations to Dr. Vijay-Kumar!

Sachin Aryal, Leah Stevenson and Ishan Manandhar from the AI/Machine Learning Lab took part in the Association of Bioinformaticists and Computational Biologist (ABCB)'s Bioinformatics Hackathon. It was organized by CDRL lab in Neuroscience Department at UT from April14-16 , 2021. They represented one of 4 teams that competed, two of which were from other Universities. Results are still awaited.

Dr. Camilla Ferreira Wenceslau was selected for the APS CV Section awards committee. Her term begins 5/1/21 and ends 4/30/2024. Congratulations!

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe and team for recently accepted publications:

Denisha Spires, Oleg Palygin, Vladislav Levchenko, Elena Isaeva, Christine A. Klemens, Sherif Khedr, Oksana Nikolaienko, Alison J. Kriegel, Xi Cheng, Jiyoun Yeo, Bina Joe manuscript "Sexual dimorphism in the progression of type 2 diabetic kidney disease in T2DN rats. Physiological Genomics

Zubcevic J and Joe B. "Ain't no sunshine when they're gone: Rendering the gut microbiota 'homeless' by cecectomy reveals their true thermogenic potential". FUNCTION

Congratulations to Dr. Koch and team for recently accepted publications:

"Skeletal Muscle Heme Oxygenase-1 Activity Regulates Aerobic Capacity” at Cell Reports to be published April 20. Access at Cell Reports homepage and Science Direct . Paper is a collaborative study with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School.
“Rats with elevated genetic risk for metabolic syndrome exhibit cognitive deficiencies when young” published Online ahead of print April 7 in Physiology & Behavior. Access at Science Direct. Paper is a collaborative study with Univ of Jyvaskyla, Finland.

Congratulations to Dr. Jasenka Zubcevic and Dr. Tao Yang! Their work is recognized as a top cited article by Acta Physiologica. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/apha.13256?elq_mid=50542&elq_cid=29710775&elqCampaignId=32401&utm_campaign=32401&utm_source=eloquaEmail&utm_medium=email&utm_content=EM1_Batch1_Author_FY21_Q4_RM-PORT__Top%20Cited%20Author%20Campaign_R534M2R&elqTrack=true

Congratulations to Dr. Jennifer Hill and team! Their lab's latest review article has been released as part of a Special Issue by the Journal of Neuroendocrinology. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jne.12930

Congratulations to Anish Gupta! Anish has been selected by 'Ohio Academy of Science' for oral presentations at 'National OJSHS'. He is one of the six statewide finalists to go to the national competition. His work was also selected for the 'Regeneration International & Engineering Fair', which international competition involves 70 countries. His achievements were showcased in a Blade article published on April 10th. Anish is a Northview High School student in Dr. Chakravarti's lab.

https://www.toledoblade.com/local/education/2021/04/10/sylvania-students-finalists-for-international-science-fair/stories/20210407117

Congratulations to Dr. Camilla Ferreira Wenceslau! She has been selected as a Standing Member for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Integrative Vascular Physiology and Pathology (IVPP) Study Section for 6 years.

Congratulations to Dr. Xi Cheng! His proposal titled, "Identification and Characterization of Risk Factors for Cardio-renal Anemia Syndrome', was funded through the Oracle for Research in the amount of $50,000 for one year.

Congratulations again to Dr. Xi Cheng! His grant pre-proposal entitled, "A Novel Artificial Intelligence Strategy Using Wild Fish Fecal Microbiota to Detect Environmental Stress in Lake Erie", was invited for submission of a full proposal

We are pleased to announce that this review article developed during last summer as a collaborative work between our Department and the Department of Medical Education was finally accepted for publication last week in the journal ‘Current Hypertension Reports’. Congratulations to Rachel for her excellent team work.

Impact of Nutritional Epigenetics in Essential Hypertension: Targeting microRNAs in the Gut-Liver Axis
Rachel M. Golonka¹, Johnathan Kawika Cooper^2,#, Rochell Issa^2,#, Pratyush Pavan Devarasetty^2,#, Veda Gokula², Joshua Busken², Jasenka Zubcevic^{1, 3}, Jennifer Hill¹, Matam Vijay-Kumar¹, Bindu Menon^4,*, Bina Joe^1,*
¹ Microbiome Consortium, Center for Hypertension and Precision Medicine, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, The University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences, Toledo, OH, United States
² The University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences, Toledo, OH, United States
³ Department of Physiological Sciences and Center for Environmental and Human Toxicology, University of Florida Genetics Institute, Interdisciplinary Program in Biomedical Sciences Neuroscience, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA.
⁴ Department of Medical Education, The University of Toledo College of Medicine, Toledo, OH, United States

# Equally contributed authors

Abstract
Purpose of Review To review the current knowledge on interactions between dietary factors and microRNAs (miRNAs) in essential hypertension (EH) pathogenesis.
Recent Findings There exists an integration of maintenance signals generated by genetic, epigenetic, immune, and environmental (e.g., dietary) factors that work to sustain balance in the gut-liver axis. It is well-established that an imbalance in this complex, intertwined system substantially increases the risk for EH. As such, pertinent research has been taken to decipher how each signal operates in isolation and together in EH progression. Recent literature indicates that both macro- and micronutrients interrupt regulatory miRNA expressions and thus, alter multiple cellular processes that contribute to EH and its comorbidities. We highlight how carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, salt, and potassium modify miRNA signatures during EH. The disruption in miRNA expression can negatively impact communication systems such as over activating the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, modulating the vascular smooth muscle cell phenotype, and promoting angiogenesis to favor EH. We also delineate the prognostic value of miRNAs in EH and discuss the pros and cons of surgical vs dietary prophylactic approaches in EH prevention.
Summary We propose that dietary-dependent perturbation of the miRNA profile is one mechanism within the gut-liver axis that dictates EH development.
Keywords: Gut Microbiome; Vasculature; Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone System; Hyperlipidemia; Bariatric Surgery

A shout out to all our students who did an excellent job at this year's GRF. Congratulations to all the finalists, Mitchell, Rachel and Jonnelle, all of whom went on to win awards. Here are the details:

GRF 2021 Poster Session Finalists and Winners

Fathima Dhilhani Mohammed Faleel

Sukanya Chakravarty

Smrithi Sugumaran Menon (Second Place)

Sara Moore (Third Place)

Mitchell Harberson Trainee of Dr. Jennifer W. Hill

Rachel Golonka (First Place) Trainee of Dr. Matam Vijay-Kumar

GRF 2021 Oral Session Finalists and Winners

Joshua Breidenbach (First Place Tie)

Jonnelle Edwards (Second Place) Trainee of Dr. Camilla Ferreira Wenceslau

Kathryn Becker (First Place Tie)

A big thank you to the qualifying round judges, the challengers’ advisors, and a special thank you to Dr. Michael Toland for providing additional time and space for practice and feedback to the challengers.

Listed in alphabetical order by first name are the 8 finalists for the 4^th Annual 3MT® Competition at The University of Toledo, sponsored by the College of Graduate Studies:

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Vicki Dagostino-Kalniz

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Gabriella Baki

Faculty Advisor: Drs. Sujatta Shetty and Neil Reid

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Revathy Kumar

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Youngwoo Seo

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Bina Joe

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Revathy Kumar

Faculty Advisor: Dr. John Sarnecki

Afnan M. Alrshed—Judith Herb College of Education
Briana Maktabi—College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Brittany Jones—College of Arts and Letters
Holly Eichner—Judith Herb College of Education
Parul Baranwal—College of Engineering
Sachin Aryal—College of Medicine and Life Sciences
Sarah Long—Judith Herb College of Education
Timothy DeGriselles—College of Arts and Letters

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang, Dr. Saroj Chakraborty and graduate students, Ms. Mandal and Ms. Mei from the Joe Lab! Their latest invited review was accepted in Comprehensive Physiology, which is an exclusively invited review journal of the American Heart Association.

Title: "Microbiota and metabolites as factors influencing blood pressure regulation."

Authors: Yang, T, Chakraborty, S, Mandal, J, Mei, X, Joe, B

Abstract: The study of microbes has rapidly expanded in recent years due to a surge in our understanding that humans host a plethora of commensal microbes, which reside in their bodies and depending upon their composition, contribute to either normal physiology or pathophysiology. This article provides a general foundation for learning about host-commensal microbial interactions as an emerging area of research. The article is divided into two sections. The first section is dedicated to introducing commensal microbiota and its known effects on the host. The second section is on metabolites, which are biochemicals that the host and the microbes use for bi-directional communication with each other. Together, the sections review what is known about how microbes interact with the host to impact cardiovascular physiology, especially blood pressure regulation.

Dr. Stephanie Watts from the Michigan State University, who is the 2020 Harriet Dustan Awardee, wrote an article associated with her award which is accepted and scheduled for publication in the Feb 2021 issue of Hypertension. In this article she showcased someof her predecessors of this award from the AHA, for their advice to the next generation of hypertension researchers.

Title: "Connecting generations of scientists in the Council on
Hypertension through Harriet Dustan."

Authors: Stephanie W.Watts, Barbara Alexander, ChrisBaylis, Nancy Brown, Lisa Cassis, Kate Denton, Bina Joe, Lilach Lerman, Suzanne Oparil, Jane Reckelhoff, Kathryn Sandberg and Rhian M. Touyz.

Congratulations to Ishan Manandhar from the Joe lab! His abstract was selected for a poster presentation at the American Society for Human Genetics (ASHG) Virtual Meeting 2020 held in October. The title of his abstract is, "Application of Artificial Intelligence for Microbiome-Based Detection of Inflammatory Bowel Disease."

Congratulations to Dr. Saroj Chakraborty! He successfully defended his dissertation, December 1, 2020.

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe, she is now an International Society of Hypertension Fellow (ISHF)!

Congratulations to Dr. Matam Vijay-Kumar and his trainee, Rachel Golonka on the publication of their book chapter!

Title: Atypical immunometabolism and metabolic reprogramming in liver cancer: Deciphering the role of gut microbiome
Authors: Rachel M. Golonka, Matam Vijay-Kumar
Journal: Advances in Cancer Research

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang on his recent publications!

Title: Pulmonary arterial hypertension-associated changes in gut pathology and microbiota.
Authors: Sharma RK, Oliveira AC, Yang T, Kim S, Zubcevic J, Aquino V, Lobaton GO, Goel R, Richards EM, Raizada MK.
Journal: ERJ Open Res.

Title: Probiotic Bifidobacterium breve prevents DOCA-salt hypertension.
Authors: Robles-Vera I, de la Visitación N, Toral M, Sánchez M, Romero M, Gómez-Guzmán M, Yang T, Izquierdo-García JL, Guerra-Hernández E, Ruiz-Cabello J, Raizada MK, Pérez-Vizcaíno F, Jiménez R, Duarte J.
Journal: FASEB J.

Title: Antihypertensive effects of exercise involve reshaping of gut microbiota and improvement of gut-brain axis in spontaneously hypertensive rat.
Authors: Wen-Jie Xia, Meng-Lu Xu, Xiao-Jing Yu, Meng-Meng Du, Xu-Hui Li, Tao Yang, Lu Li, Ying Li, Kai B. Kang, Qing Su, Jia-Xi Xu, Xiao-Lian Shi, Xiao-Min Wang, Hong-Bao Li, Yu-Ming Kang.
Journal: Gut Microbes.

Congratulations to Dr. Saroj Chakraborty! He successfully defended his dissertation, December 1, 2020.

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe, she is now an International Society of Hypertension Fellow (ISHF)!

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang on his recent publications!

Title: Pulmonary arterial hypertension-associated changes in gut pathology and microbiota.
Authors: Sharma RK, Oliveira AC, Yang T, Kim S, Zubcevic J, Aquino V, Lobaton GO, Goel R, Richards EM, Raizada MK.
Journal: ERJ Open Res.

Title: Probiotic Bifidobacterium breve prevents DOCA-salt hypertension.
Authors: Robles-Vera I, de la Visitación N, Toral M, Sánchez M, Romero M, Gómez-Guzmán M, Yang T, Izquierdo-García JL, Guerra-Hernández E, Ruiz-Cabello J, Raizada MK, Pérez-Vizcaíno F, Jiménez R, Duarte J.
Journal: FASEB J.

Title: Antihypertensive effects of exercise involve reshaping of gut microbiota and improvement of gut-brain axis in spontaneously hypertensive rat.
Authors: Wen-Jie Xia, Meng-Lu Xu, Xiao-Jing Yu, Meng-Meng Du, Xu-Hui Li, Tao Yang, Lu Li, Ying Li, Kai B. Kang, Qing Su, Jia-Xi Xu, Xiao-Lian Shi, Xiao-Min Wang, Hong-Bao Li, Yu-Ming Kang.
Journal: Gut Microbes.

Congratulations to Dr. Cameron McCarthy and team for their publication being accepted to Comprehensive Physiology! "Innate immune cells and hypertension: Neutrophils and neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs)"

Authors
Cameron G. McCarthy, Piu Saha, Rachel M. Golonka, Camilla F. Wenceslau, Bina Joe, & Matam Vijay-Kumar

Last week, Women & Philanthropy held a virtual webinar presentation regarding COVID-19 and Hypertension, featuring Dr. Bina Joe and Dr. Cameron McCarthy. With the College of Medicine and Life Sciences Alumni Affiliate as a co-sponsor, there were 79 attendees for this event. The webinar was recorded and is now online for those who were unable to attend or wish to view it.

Watch The Webinar

Dr. Xi Cheng was invited by Takara Bio USA, Inc (Ann Arbor) to give a virtual seminar about the application of artificial intelligence into next-generation sequencing and metagenomics in cardiovascular medicine, which will be followed by a group discussion with their R&D Scientists. The meeting takes place on November 17, 2020.

The Machine Learning Lab was recently featured in an article in the UT News. The article is about the potential of artificial intelligence screening for cardiovascular disease. They are also currently featured in a UT postcard campaign for U.S. News and World Report featuring COVID-19 research. http://news.utoledo.edu/index.php/10_08_2020/utoledo-research-shows-potential-of-artificial-intelligence-to-screen-for-cardiovascular-disease

Congratulations to Dr. Cameron McCarthy! He has been selected as one of the top 3 best performing Star Reviewers for 2019 from the American Physiological Society.

Congratulations to Dr. Camilla Ferreira Wenceslau and the Germ-Free Rat Research Team of the UT Microbiome Consortium! Their manuscript, "Microbiota introduced to germ-free rats restores vascular contractility and blood pressure", was accepted for publication in Hypertension.

Authors: Bina Joe, Cameron G. McCarthy, Jonnelle M. Edwards, Xi Cheng, Saroj Chakraborty, Tao Yang, Rachel M. Golonka, Blair Mell, Ji-Youn Yeo, Nicole Bearss, Janara Furtado, Piu Saha, Beng San Yeoh, Matam Vijay-Kumar, Camilla F. Wenceslau.

Abstract
Commensal gut microbiota are strongly correlated with host hemodynamic homeostasis, but only broadly associated with cardiovascular health. This includes a general correspondence of quantitative and qualitative shifts in intestinal microbial communities found in hypertensive rat models and human patients. However, the mechanisms by which gut microbes contribute to the function of organs important for blood pressure control remain unanswered. To examine the direct effects of microbiota on blood pressure, we conventionalized germ-free (GF) rats with specific pathogen free rats for a short-term period of 10 days, which served as a model system to observe the dynamic responses when reconstituting the holobiome. The absence of microbiota in GF rats resulted with relative hypotension compared to their conventionalized counterparts, suggesting an obligatory role of microbiota in blood pressure homeostasis. Hypotension observed in GF rats was accompanied by a marked reduction in vascular contractility. Both blood pressure and vascular contractility were restored by the introduction of microbiota to GF rats, indicating that microbiota could be impacting blood pressure through a vascular-dependent mechanism. This is further supported by the decrease in actin polymerization in arteries from GF rats. Improved vascular contractility in conventionalized GF rats, as indicated through stabilized actin filaments, was associated with an increase in cofilin phosphorylation. These data indicate that the vascular system senses the presence (or lack of) microbiota to maintain vascular tone via actin polymerization. Taken together, these results constitute a fundamental discovery of the essential nature of microbiota in blood pressure regulation.

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang! He has been selected as one of the top 3 best performing Star Reviewers for 2019 from the American Physiology Society. The criteria for being chosen for this honor is: timeliness, number of MMS reviewed and consistent willingness to review invites.

We are pleased to announce that Dr. Bina Joe was accepted to the editorial board of Genes.

The Department was highlighted by a press release from the American Heart Association. Congrats to the Machine Learning Lab on their work being in the spot light! See the list of highlights below:

AHA: https://newsroom.heart.org/news/gut-microbiome-data-may-be-helpful-in-routine-screening-of-cardiovascular-disease

Drug Topics: Study: Gut Microbiome Data May Be Useful in Screening for Heart Disease
Health IT Analytics: Machine Learning Could Improve Cardiovascular Disease Screening
UPI: AI tool screens for heart disease using gut bacteria, study shows
Science Daily: Gut microbiome data may be helpful in routine screening of cardiovascular disease
Home Health Choices: Gut microbiome knowledge could also be useful in routine screening of cardiovascular disease
Medpage Today: Can Machine Learning Make Fecal Testing Part of CVD Screening?

2020 NV graduate Avinash Singh has been selected as a Melvin Scholar for the Ohio Academy of Science (OAS) for his scientific presentation at the Academy's Annual Meeting in April 2020.

Avi completed the AP Capstone Diploma Program at Sylvania Northview. During Avi's senior year, he landed a premier AP research opportunity developed by his teacher, Ms. Kathryn Nelson, and Dr. Bina Joe, Chair of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology at the University of Toledo, College of Medicine. As part of his AP Research experience, Avi worked for approximately 16 hours per week in Dr. Joe's lab at the Center for Hypertension and Precision Medicine. His investigations resulted in his original research paper titled 'A Novel Ex Vivo Procedure for Monitoring B-Hydroxybutyrate (BOHB) Production Isolated from Whole Livers.' Avi will have the opportunity to present his outstanding scientific contribution at the National meeting of the American Academy for the Advancement of Science meeting (AJAS; February 2021). Avi will also interact with top student scientists and professional researchers, as well as world-renowned scientists and engineers from around the globe.

We are very proud of Avi, Northview's first Melvin Scholar. We look forward to more exciting things from him as he continues his education at the University of Pennsylvania (an ivy league institution). More information is available at www.ohiosci.org/ajas, and the abstract of his work is on page 20 of the OAS journal https://www.ohiosci.org/s/OJS-AM-Program-Vol-120-No-1.pdf.

The Joe Lab was highlighted by a press release from the American Heart Association. Congrats to the Machine Learning Lab on their work being in the spot light! See the list of highlights below:

AHA: https://newsroom.heart.org/news/gut-microbiome-data-may-be-helpful-in-routine-screening-of-cardiovascular-disease

Drug Topics: Study: Gut Microbiome Data May Be Useful in Screening for Heart Disease
Health IT Analytics: Machine Learning Could Improve Cardiovascular Disease Screening
UPI: AI tool screens for heart disease using gut bacteria, study shows
Science Daily: Gut microbiome data may be helpful in routine screening of cardiovascular disease
Home Health Choices: Gut microbiome knowledge could also be useful in routine screening of cardiovascular disease
Medpage Today: Can Machine Learning Make Fecal Testing Part of CVD Screening?

Congratulations to Dr. Cameron McCarthy! He has been elected as a Fellow of the American Heart Association (FAHA).

Well done!

Congratulations to Sachin Aryal and colleagues! Their manuscript has been accepted for publication in the November 2020 edition of Hypertension.

A machine learning strategy for gut microbiome-based diagnostic screening of cardiovascular disease
Sachin Aryal, Ahmad Alimadadi, Ishan Manandhar, Bina Joe^* and Xi Cheng^*
Bioinformatics & Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Center for Hypertension and Precision Medicine, Program in Physiological Genomics, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences, Toledo, OH 43614, USA

Abstract
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the number one leading cause for human mortality. Besides genetics and environmental factors, in recent years, gut microbiota has emerged as a new factor influencing CVD. Although cause-effect relationships are not clearly established, the reported associations between alterations in gut microbiota and CVD are prominent. Therefore, we hypothesized that machine learning (ML) could be used for gut microbiome-based diagnostic screening of CVD. To test our hypothesis, fecal 16S rRNA sequencing data of 478 CVD and 473 non-CVD human subjects collected through the American Gut Project were analyzed using 5 supervised ML algorithms including random forest (RF), support vector machine, decision tree, elastic net and neural networks (NN). Thirty-nine differential bacterial taxa were identified between the CVD and non-CVD groups. ML modeling using these taxonomic features achieved a testing AUC (area under the receiver operating characteristic curves; 0.0: perfect anti-discrimination; 0.5: random guessing; 1.0: perfect discrimination) of ~0.58 (RF and NN). Next, the ML models were trained with the top 500 high-variance features of operational taxonomic units (OTUs), instead of bacterial taxa, and an improved testing AUC of ~0.65 (RF) was achieved. Further, by limiting the selection to only the top 25 highly contributing OTU features, the AUC was further significantly enhanced to ~0.70. Overall, our study is the first to identify dysbiosis of gut microbiota in CVD patients as a group and apply this knowledge to develop a gut microbiome-based ML approach for diagnostic screening of CVD.

Congratulations to Dr. Ahmad Alimadadi and colleagues! Their manuscript was accepted to Physiological Genomics.

Title: Machine learning based classification and diagnosis of clinical cardiomyopathies
Authors: Ahmad Alimadadi, Ishan Manandhar, Sachin Aryal, Patricia B. Munroe, Bina Joe, Xi Cheng
Abstract:
Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and ischemic cardiomyopathy (ICM) are two common types of cardiomyopathies leading to heart failure. Accurate diagnostic classification of different types of cardiomyopathies is critical for precision medicine in clinical practice. In this study, we hypothesized that machine learning (ML) can be used as a novel diagnostic approach to analyze cardiac transcriptomic data for classifying clinical cardiomyopathies.RNA-seq data of human left ventricle tissues were collected from 41 DCM patients, 47 ICM patients and 49 non-failure controls (NF) and tested using five ML algorithms: support vector machine with radial kernel (svmRadial), neural networks with principal component analysis (pcaNNet), decision tree (DT), elastic net (ENet) and random forest (RF).Initial ML classifications achieved ~93% accuracy (svmRadial) for NF vs DCM, ~82% accuracy (RF) for NF vs ICM, and ~80% accuracy (ENet and svmRadial) for DCM vs ICM. Next, 50 highly contributing genes (HCGs) for classifying NF and DCM, 68 HCGs for classifying NF and ICM, and 59 HCGs for classifying DCM and ICM were selected for re-training ML models. Impressively, the re-trained models achieved ~90% accuracy (RF) for NF vs DCM, ~90% accuracy (pcaNNet) for NF vs ICM, and ~85% accuracy (pcaNNet and RF) for DCM vs ICM. Pathway analyses further confirmed the involvement of those selected HCGs in cardiac dysfunctions such as cardiomyopathies, cardiac hypertrophies and fibrosis. Overall, our study demonstrates the promising potential of using artificial intelligence via ML modeling as a novel approach to achieve a greater level of precision in diagnosing different types of cardiomyopathies.

Congrats to Saroj Chakravarti, trainee of Dr. Bina Joe, his manuscript has been selected for publication in Hypertension!

Title: A single nucleotide polymorphism of Secreted phosphoprotein 2
confers sex-specific effects on blood pressure and bone health

Authors: Saroj Chakraborty, Blair Mell, Ying Nie, Xi Cheng, Sarah Galla, Piotr Czernik2, Beata Lecka-Czernik and Bina Joe

Abstract:
Hypertension is a complex polygenic disease caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Rat models serve as tools to dissect and prioritize genetic factors as candidate genes causing hypertension. One such candidate gene prioritized through systematic linkage and substitution mapping is Secreted Phosphoprotein 2 (Spp2). A non-synonymous G/T single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) between the Dahl Salt-Sensitive (S) rats and Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats (SHR) at the Spp2 locus was prioritized as a candidate quantitative trait nucleotide (QTN) responsible for the reduction in blood pressure (BP) and bone mineral density (BMD) observed in the S.SHR congenic strain spanning the Spp2 locus. We hypothesized that CRISPR/Cas9 precision-engineering guided replacement of the ‘G’ allele at the Spp2 locus with a ‘T’ allele would lower BP and BMD of the S rat. Radiotelemetry and micro-CT was performed with Spp2 knock-in rats using S rat as control. Systolic BP of the Spp2 knock-in male rats was significantly lower compared to that of the non-founder S rats. However, there was no change in systolic BP of the Spp2 knock-in female rats compared to that of the non-founder S rats. In addition, there was a significant reduction in bone size and bone mass resulting in lower bone volume by total volume (BV/TV) in female Spp2 knock-in rats compared to S. These data provide conclusive evidence for a single nucleotide polymorphism within the Spp2 gene as a quantitative trait nucleotide (QTN) responsible for the sex-dependent inheritance of blood pressure and bone health.

An abstract from research first authored by Dr. Piotr Czernik and lead by Drs. Vijay-Kumar, Joe and Lecka-Czernik has been selected by the BMA2020 Organizing Committee to be presented as a Plenary Oral presentation at a virtual meeting of the 6th International Meeting on Bone Marrow Adiposity (BMA2020, Marrow Adiposity: Bone, Aging and Beyond). The meeting will be held September 9-10, 2020.

Abstract Title: Reconstitution of the host holobiont acutely increases bone growth and marrow adiposity of the gnotobiotic rat

Ms. Xue Mei, a PhD trainee of Dr. Bina Joe, and Dr. Xi Cheng, a post doc to faculty fellow of Dr. Bina Joe were both selected to receive the HTN New Investigator Travel Award.

Since the meeting is virtual this year, they will both receive complimentary registration, be listed on the conference website and receive award certificates.

Well done, Mei and Dr. Cheng!

An editorial that Dr. Bina Joe contributed to has been published by the American Journal of Physiology-Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology.

Title
"An American Physiological Society cross-journal Call for Papers on "Deconstructing organs: Single-cell analyses, decellularized organs, organoids, and organ-on-a-chip models". https://journals.physiology.org/doi/abs/10.1152/ajplung.00311.2020

Authors
Josephine C. Adams, P. Darwin Bell, Sue C. Bodine, Heddwen L. Brooks, Nigel Bunnett, Bina Joe, Kara Hansell Keehan, Thomas R. Kleyman, Andre Marette, Rory E. Morty, Jan-Marino Ramirez, Morten B. Thomsen, Bill J. Yates, Irving H. Zucker.

Our Department has remained highly productive during the lockdown phase as evidenced by the following publications. Some of these publications, especially related to COVID-19 have been downloaded over 8,000 times just within the short period of a few months. This is an impressive performance by our students and faculty, one that speaks to our high level of productivity despite the pandemic.

Harnessing innate immunity to eliminate SARS-CoV-2 and ameliorate COVID-19 disease. Golonka RM, Saha P, Yeoh BS, Chattopadhyay S, Gewirtz AT, Joe B, Vijay-Kumar M. Physiol Genomics. 2020 May 1;52(5):217-221. doi: 10.1152/physiolgenomics.00033.2020. Epub 2020 Apr 10. PMID: 32275178
Artificial intelligence and machine learning to fight COVID-19. Alimadadi A, Aryal S, Manandhar I, Munroe PB, Joe B, Cheng X. Physiol Genomics. 2020 Apr 1;52(4):200-202.doi:10.1152/physiolgenomics.00029.2020. Epub 2020 Mar 27. PMID: 32216577
Microbiota are critical for vascular physiology: Germ-free status weakens contractility and induces sex-specific vascular remodeling in mice. Edwards JM, Roy S, Tomcho JC, Schreckenberger ZJ, Chakraborty S, Bearss NR, Saha P, McCarthy CG, Vijay-Kumar M, Joe B, Wenceslau CF. Vascul Pharmacol. 2020 Feb-Mar;125-126:106633. doi: 10.1016/j.vph.2019.106633. Epub 2019 Dec 13. PMID: 31843471
Vancomycin prevents fermentable fiber-induced liver cancer in mice with dysbiotic gut microbiota. Singh V, Yeoh BS, Abokor AA, Golonka RM, Tian Y, Patterson AD, Joe B, Heikenwalder M, Vijay-Kumar M. Gut Microbes. 2020 Mar 30:1-15. doi: 10.1080/19490976.2020.1743492. Online ahead of print. PMID: 32223398
Genetic predisposition for increased red blood cell distribution width is an early risk factor for cardiovascular and renal comorbidities. Cheng X, Mell B, Alimadadi A, Galla S, McCarthy CG, Chakraborty S, Basrur V, Joe B. Dis Model Mech. 2020 Apr 3:dmm.044081. doi: 10.1242/dmm.044081. Online ahead of print. PMID: 32238420
Metabolites and Hypertension: Insights into Hypertension as a Metabolic Disorder: 2019 Harriet Dustan Award. Chakraborty S, Mandal J, Yang T, Cheng X, Yeo JY, McCarthy CG, Wenceslau CF, Koch LG, Hill JW, Vijay-Kumar M, Joe B.Hypertension. 2020 Apr 27:HYPERTENSIONAHA12013896. doi: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.120.13896. Online ahead of print. PMID: 32336227
Probiotics Prevent Dysbiosis and the Rise in Blood Pressure in Genetic Hypertension: Role of Short-Chain Fatty Acids. Robles-Vera I, Toral M, de la Visitación N, Sánchez M, Gómez-Guzmán M, Romero M, Yang T, Izquierdo-Garcia JL, Jiménez R, Ruiz-Cabello J, Guerra-Hernández E, Raizada MK, Pérez-Vizcaíno F, Duarte J. Mol Nutr Food Res. 2020 Mar;64(6):e1900616. doi: 10.1002/mnfr.201900616. Epub 2020 Feb 6. PMID: 31953983
The obligatory role of the acetylcholine-induced endothelium-dependent contraction in hypertension: Can arachidonic acid resolve this inflammation? Edwards JM, McCarthy CG, Wenceslau CF. Curr Pharm Des. 2020 Apr 17. doi: 10.2174/1381612826666200417150121. Online ahead of print. PMID: 32303165
Mitophagy in Hypertension-Associated Premature Vascular Aging. Schreckenberger ZJ, Wenceslau CF, Joe B, McCarthy CG. Am J Hypertens. 2020 Apr 6:hpaa058. doi: 10.1093/ajh/hpaa058. Online ahead of print.PMID: 32533696
Renal Fibrosis Is Significantly Attenuated Following Targeted Disruption of Cd40 in Experimental Renal Ischemia. Zhang S, Breidenbach JD, Khalaf FK, Dube PR, Mohammed CJ, Lad A, Stepkowski S, Hinds TD, Kumarasamy S, Kleinhenz A, Tian J, Malhotra D, Kennedy DJ, Cooper CJ, Haller ST. J Am Heart Assoc. 2020 Apr 7;9(7):e014072. doi: 10.1161/JAHA.119.014072. Epub 2020 Mar 21. PMID: 32200719
The interferon-inducible protein TDRD7 inhibits AMP-activated protein kinase and thereby restricts autophagy-independent virus replication. Subramanian G, Popli S, Chakravarty S, Taylor RT, Chakravarti R, Chattopadhyay S.J Biol Chem. 2020 Apr 9:jbc.RA120.013533. doi: 10.1074/jbc.RA120.013533. Online ahead of print. PMID: 32273341
High Throughput Screening of FDA-Approved Drug Library Reveals the Compounds that Promote IRF3-Mediated Pro-Apoptotic Pathway Inhibit Virus Replication. Glanz A, Chawla K, Fabry S, Subramanian G, Garcia J, Jay B, Ciricillo J, Chakravarti R, Taylor RT, Chattopadhyay S. Viruses. 2020 Apr 14;12(4):E442. doi: 10.3390/v12040442. PMID: 32295140
Kirkpatrick JF and Turner JWJr (2020), Wildlife Contraception and Political Cuisinarts (Chapt. 19), In ( Allen DM and Howell JW, eds.) Title: Groupthink in Science, (subtitle; Greed, Pathological Altruism, Ideology, Competition and Culture), Springer Int’l Publ., New York , 278 pp. [ ISBN 978-3-030-36822-7 ].
Gnotobiotic Rats Reveal That Gut Microbiota Regulates Colonic mRNA of Ace2, the Receptor for SARS-CoV-2 Infectivity.Yang T, Chakraborty S, Saha P, Mell B, Cheng X, Yeo JY, Mei X, Zhou G, Mandal J, Golonka R, Yeoh BS, Putluri V, Piyarathna DWB, Putluri N, McCarthy CG, Wenceslau CF, Sreekumar A, Gewirtz AT, Vijay-Kumar M, Joe B.Hypertension. 2020 Jul;76(1):e1-e3. doi: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.120.15360. Epub 2020 May 19.PMID: 32426999
Diurnal Timing Dependent Alterations in Gut Microbial Composition Are Synchronously Linked to Salt-Sensitive Hypertension and Renal Damage. Chakraborty S, Mandal J, Cheng X, Galla S, Hindupur A, Saha P, Yeoh BS, Mell B, Yeo JY, Vijay-Kumar M, Yang T, Joe B.Hypertension. 2020 Jul;76(1):59-72. doi: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.120.14830. Epub 2020 May 26.PMID: 32450738
Altered nutrient status reprograms host inflammation and metabolic health via gut microbiota. Golonka RM, Xiao X, Abokor AA, Joe B, Vijay-Kumar M.J Nutr Biochem. 2020 Jun;80:108360. doi: 10.1016/j.jnutbio.2020.108360. Epub 2020 Feb 22. PMID: 32163821 Review.

The high school students who spent their fall with us obtaining college credit for research presented their work virtually at the State Science Day and won Ohio Academy of Science placements. Shrey Gupta, who worked with Dr. Ritu Chakravarti won an 'Excellent' rating. Daven Serakonda, who worked under Dr. Matam Vijay-Kumar, Avinash Singh who worked closely with Dr. Cameron McCarthy and Evangelina Louis who worked closely with Saroj Chakraborty, all obtained a superior rating. Ms. Louis also won first prize for statistical analysis. We are proud of these talented students.

Congratulations to Dr. Ritu Chakravarti and Dr. Bina Joe! Their patent, "Materials and Methods for the Prevention of Rheumatoid Arthritis", was published on May 22, 2020.

Congrats to Saroj Chakroborty, mentee of Dr. Bina Joe! His first authored manuscript was accepted for publication in the journal, Hypertension.

Title: Diurnal Timing Dependent Alterations in Gut Microbial Composition Are Synchronously Linked to Salt-Sensitive Hypertension and Renal Damage
Authors: Saroj Chakraborty, Juthika Mandal, Xi Cheng, Sarah Galla, Anay Hindupur, Piu Saha, Beng San Yeoh, Blair Mell, Ji-Youn Yeo, Matam Vijay-Kumar, Tao Yang, Bina Joe

Congratulations to our May 2020 Graduates!

Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences
Ahmad Alimadadi
Bioinformatics and Proteomics/Genomics
Advisor: Bina Joe, Ph.D.

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang, et al! Their manuscript was recently accepted for publication in Hypertension!

Gnotobiotic Rats Reveal that Gut Microbiota Regulates Colonic mRNA of Ace2, the Receptor for SARS-CoV-2 Infectivity

Tao Yang¹, Saroj Chakraborty¹, Piu Saha¹, Blair Mell¹, Xi Cheng¹, Ji-Youn Yeo¹, Xue Mei¹, Guannan Zhou¹, Juthika Mandal¹, Rachel Golonka¹, Beng San Yeoh¹, Vasanta Putluri², Danthasinghe Waduge Badrajee Piyarathna³, Nagireddy Putluri², Cameron G. McCarthy¹, Camilla Wenceslau¹, Arun Sreekumar², Andrew T. Gewirtz⁴, Matam Vijay-Kumar¹, Bina Joe¹

¹Microbiome Consortium, Center for Hypertension and Precision Medicine and the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences, Toledo, OH, USA

²Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Advanced Technology Core, Alkek Center for Molecular Discovery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA

³Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA

⁴Center for Inflammation, Immunity, and Infection, Institute for Biomedical Sciences, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, USA

This study clearly showed that gut microbiota represents a critical factor for the regulation of colonic Ace2 expression and associated colonic and systemic factors that likely contribute to the pathology of the gut-lung axis during COVID-19. Therefore, further studies are necessary to examine the gut microbial composition and its role in ACE2 expression in the COVID-19 susceptible and resistant populations, which would importantly inform on better clinical management of COVID-19.

A publication emanating from Dr. Youjie Zhang's graduate work in Dr. Joe's laboratory has been selected as the cover for the April issue of Physiological Genomics. The art developed by the journal reflects the content of the publication to indicate that the microbiome is vertically co-inherited depending on the selection of the nuclear and mitochondrial genomes.

Congratulations to Dr. Cameron McCarthy, a Postdoctoral to Faculty Fellow from Dr. Bina Joe's lab! He has secured 5 year K99/R00 funding. This is no small feat. Your hard work and dedication have paid off!

The purpose of the NIH Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00) program is to increase and maintain a strong cohort of new and talented, NIH-supported, independent investigators. This program is designed to facilitate a timely transition of outstanding postdoctoral researchers with a research and/or clinical doctorate degree from mentored, postdoctoral research positions to independent, tenure-track or equivalent faculty positions. The program will provide independent NIH research support during this transition in order to help awardees to launch competitive, independent research careers.

Project Title: Autophagy regulates β-hydroxybutyrate synthesis to prevent hypertension-associated premature vascular aging Grant Number: 1K99HL151889-01 Project Period: 07/01/2020 – 06/30/2022 (K99); 07/01/2022 - 06/30/2025 (R00)

Project Narrative
Hypertension is a condition of premature vascular aging, where the normal decline in vascular function as we age is accelerated and exacerbated. It is well established that upregulation of autophagy can ameliorate this “aged” phenotype; however, underlying mechanisms are yet to be determined. Given that autophagy also serves to mobilize macro- and micronutrients in times of stress, we hypothesize that upregulation of autophagy in the liver, stimulates the production of ketone body, β-hydroxybutyrate, which induces vasodilation, and decreases phenotypes of premature vascular aging associated with hypertension.

A hearty congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe's trainee, Dr. Ahmad Alimadadi, who is pursuing his MS in Bioinformatics! He has been selected as the recipient of the COMLS Class of 2020 Graduate Student Award. Even though UT will not be having the in-person pre-commencement awards ceremony, award recipients will still be receiving an award plaque and check for their excellent achievements. Well done, Ahmad, you make us proud!

Ji-Youn Yeo was recently highlighted in the Toledo Blade on her work in helping bring Coronavirus testing to UTMC. Read the full article here: http://www4.toledoblade.com/local/Coronavirus/2020/04/01/how-university-toledo-medical-center-specialists-brought-coronavirus-testing-lucas-county/stories/20200401137

She was also highlighted in the UT news: http://news.utoledo.edu/index.php/04_08_2020/early-interest-in-covid-19-testing-helped-utmc-launch-lab-services

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang who recently had 3 manuscripts accepted for publication!
1. Maternal Treatment With Captopril Persistently Alters Gut-Brain Communication and Attenuates Hypertension of Male Offspring. Hypertension (Accepted).
Hong-Bao Li, Tao Yang, Elaine M. Richards, Carl J. Pepine, Mohan K. Raizada
Abstract: Maternal-fetal crosstalk has been implicated in long-term control of the health of offspring, including transgenerational hypertension. However, current knowledge is limited regarding maternal influences on the gut and its microbiome in blood pressure control in offspring. Therefore, the current study was designed to test the hypothesis that maternal factors influence the gut-brain axis impacting hypertension in offspring. We elected to use captopril, an antihypertensive angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor that possesses antibacterial properties, for the study. Pregnant female spontaneously hypertensive rats and normotensive Wistar Kyoto rats were treated with captopril water (100 mg/[kg·day]) or sterile water throughout pregnancy and lactation. At weaning, the pups from dams drinking sterile water were continued with sterile water until 12 weeks of age. The male pups from dams drinking captopril water were divided at weaning into 2 groups: offspring drinking captopril water and offspring withdrawn from captopril water, then drinking sterile water until 12 weeks of age. Captopril changed gut microbiota of spontaneously hypertensive rat dams, and some of these changes were reflected in their 12-week-old male offspring. These 12-week-old spontaneously hypertensive rat male offspring exposed to captopril via dams demonstrated persistently decreased systolic blood pressure, decreased number of activated microglia and neuroinflammation, as well as improvement of gut inflammation and permeability. Therefore, maternal captopril treatment improves the dysregulated gut-brain axis in spontaneously hypertensive rat male offspring, providing conceptual support that targeting the gut-brain axis via the mother may be a viable strategy for control of hypertension in the offspring.

2. Gut Pathology and Its Rescue by ACE2 in Hypoxia-Induced Pulmonary Hypertension. Hypertension (Accepted).
Ravindra Sharma , Aline Oliveira , Tao Yang , Marianthi Karas , Jing Li , Gilberto Lobaton , Victor Aquino , Inaki Robles-Vera , Annette de Kloet , Eric Krause , Andrew Bryant , Amrisha Verma , Qiuhong Li , Elaine Richards, Mohan Raizada
Abstract: Therapeutic advances for pulmonary hypertension (PH) have been incremental because of the focus on the pulmonary vasculature in PH pathology. Here, we evaluate the concept that PH is, rather, a systemic disorder involving interplay among multi-organ systems including brain, gut and lungs. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the hypothesis that PH is associated with a dysfunctional brain-gut-lung axis and that global overexpression of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) rebalances this axis and protects against PH. ACE2 knock-in (ACE2KI) and wild-type (WT; C57BL/6) mice were subjected to chronic hypoxia (10% FIO2) or room air for 4 weeks. Cardio-pulmonary hemodynamics, histology, immunohistochemistry and fecal 16S rRNA microbial gene analyses were evaluated. Hypoxia significantly increased right ventricular systolic pressure, sympathetic activity as well as the number and activation of microglia in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) in WT mice. This was associated with a significant increase in muscularis layer thickening, and decreases in both villi length and goblet cells and altered gut microbiota. Global overexpression of ACE2 prevented changes in hypoxia-induced pulmonary and gut pathophysiology and established distinct microbial communities from WT hypoxia mice. Further, WT mice subjected to fecal matter transfer (FMT) from ACE2KI mice were resistant to hypoxia-induced PH compared with their controls receiving WT FMT. These observations demonstrate that ACE2 ameliorates these hypoxia-induced pathologies and attenuates PH. The data implicate dysfunctional brain-gut-lung communication in PH and provide novel avenues for therapeutic interventions.

3. Gastrointestinal dysbiosis following diethylhexyl phthalate exposure in zebrafish (Danio rerio): altered microbial diversity, functionality, and network connectivity. Environmental Pollution (Accepted).
Amanda N Buerger, David T Dillon, Jordan Schmidt, Tao Yang, Jasenka Zubcevic, Christopher J Martyniuk, Joseph H Bisesi
Abstract: Microbiome community structure is intimately involved in key biological functions in the gastrointestinal (GI) system including nutrient absorption and lipid metabolism. Recent evidence suggests that disruption of the GI microbiome is a contributing factor to metabolic disorders and obesity. Poor diet and chemical exposure have been independently shown to cause disruption of the GI microbiome community structure and function. We hypothesized that the addition a chemical exposure to overfeeding exacerbates adverse effects on the GI microbiome community structure and function. To test this hypothesis, adult zebrafish were fed a normal feeding regime (Control), an overfeeding regime (OF), or an overfeeding regime contaminated with diethylhexyl phthalate (OF+DEHP), a suspected obesogen-inducing chemical. After 60 days, fecal matter was collected for sequencing, identification, and quantification of the GI microbiome using the 16s rRNA hypervariable region. Analysis of beta diversity indicated distinct microbial profiles between treatments with the largest divergence between Control and OF+DEHP groups. Based upon functional predictions, OF+DEHP treatment altered carbohydrate metabolism, while both OF and OF+DEHP affected biosynthesis of fatty acids and lipid metabolism. Co-occurrence network analysis revealed decreases in cluster size and a fracturing of the microbial community network into unconnected components and a loss of keystone species in the OF + DEHP treatment when compared to Control and OF treatments. Data suggest that the addition of DEHP in the diet may exacerbate microbial dysbiosis, a consequence that may explain in part its role as an obesogenic chemical.

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe and team on their manuscript being accepted for publication to Disease Models & Mechanisms!

TITLE: Genetic predisposition for increased red blood cell distribution width is an early risk factor for cardiovascular and renal comorbidities

AUTHORS: Xi Cheng, Blair Mell, Ahmad Alimadadi, Sarah Lynn Galla, Cameron G McCarthy, Saroj Chakraborty, Basrur Venkatesha, and Bina Joe

Abstract

Red blood cell distribution width (RDW) is a measurement of the variation in size and volume of red blood cells (RBCs). Increased RDW, indicating a high heterogeneity of RBCs, is prominently associated with a variety of illnesses, especially cardiovascular diseases. However, the significance of this association to the onset and progression of cardiovascular and renal diseases is unknown. We hypothesized that a genetic predisposition for increased RDW is an early risk factor for cardiovascular and renal comorbidities. Since there is no known animal model of increased RDW, we examined a CRISPR/Cas9 gene-edited rat model (RfflTD) which presented with features of hematologic abnormalities as well as severe cardiac and renal comorbidities. A mass-spectrometry based quantitative proteomic analysis indicated anemia of these rats presented with significant downregulation of hemoglobin and haptoglobin. Decreased hemoglobin and increased RDW were further observed in RfflTD through complete blood count. Next, a systematic temporal assessment detected an early increased RDW in RfflTD, which was prior to the development of other comorbidities. The primary mutation of RfflTD is a 50bp deletion in a non-coding region, whereby, our study has serendipitously identified this locus as a novel quantitative trait locus (QTL) for RDW.To our knowledge, our study is the first to experimentally pinpoint a QTL for RDW and provides a novel genetic rat model mimicking the clinical association of increased RDW with poor cardio-renal outcomes.

Congratulations to the Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning laboratory in our Department for their latest publication focused on COVID-19. Dr. Xi Cheng, who directs this laboratory along with myself and 3 of my students who are pursuing their bioinformatics degrees: Ahmad Alimadadi, Ishan Manandhar and Sachin Aryal, authored this timely publication on artificial intelligence and machine learning applications to combat COVID-19. Read the article here: https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/physiolgenomics.00029.2020

Four high schoolers in the department's college credit program participated in the Northwest Ohio District 2 Science Day that was held at the Thompson Student Union on Main Campus this past Saturday.

Daven Sarikonda, mentee of Dr. Matam Vijay Kumar, won one of the top two awards at the fair. He is the recipient of the Tillotson University of Toledo District Science Day Scholarship which is a $1000 award that is renewable for three years. Daven will be moving on to the Ohio Academy of Science's 72nd Annual State Science Day which will take place on Saturday, May 9, 2020, and is hosted by Ohio State University.

Shrey Gupta, a mentee of Dr. Ritu Chakravarti, won the "Achievement Rating of Superior In Recognition of a Science Project Presented at District Science Day at the University of Toledo” and qualified to present at State Science Day at Ohio State University and the Buckeye Science and Engineering Fair 2020 (BSEF) at Ohio State University.

Evangelina "Angie" Louis, a mentee of Dr. Bina Joe, won the first prize in the entire competition and the SciFood, Nutrition & Health Diatetic Association Special (cash) award. Angie qualifies to move on to the Ohio Academy of Science's 72nd Annual State Science Day and the Buckeye Science and Engineering Fair. Angie will also be presenting at the 57th Ohio Junior Science and Humanities Symposium to be held at BGSU this week.

Avinash Singh, a mentee of Dr. Bina Joe, earned a perfect score on his presentation at the fair and also qualifies to move on to the Ohio Academy of Science's 72nd Annual State Science Day. These are hard working and talented young people that have raised the research profile of our department. Congratulations to their mentors for guiding them and please join me in wishing these students the best of luck in the upcoming fairs and competitions.

March 8th we celebrated International Women’s Day. Over the years, we have grown significantly in the number of women faculty and staff in our department. We are especially proud of both the academic and cultural vibrancy that women faculty, staff and students bring to our everyday work-life. Also, as an invited speaker in a Toledo Community organized event celebrating this day, Dr. Bina Joe had the opportunity to share some of our academic accomplishments as women scientists in Toledo. NBC24 coverage of this event can be viewed below.

Dr. Tao Yang has been invited to serve on the Editorial Board of Hypertension, a prestigious international journal of the American Heart Association.

Dr. Yang is a member of the UT Microbiome Consortium (UT MiCo). He has considerable experience in studying the gut-brain axis in hypertension and was recently recruited from the University of Florida to develop his independent research in this area under Dr. Bina Joe's mentorship.

Dr. Bina Joe has been invited by the Toledo Opera Guild to speak at the International Women's Day celebration to be held at the Pinnacle, Sunday, March 8th from 10 a.m to 3 p.m. Please see the announcement in the Toledo City Newspaper.

There will be educational booths, activities and entertainment throughout the day and my classical dance troupe will be performing at 10:30 a.m. and the speakers begin at 12:15 p.m.

https://toledocitypaper.com/feature/international-womens-day-2020/

Dr. Bina Joe's research was highlighted in the UT Alumni eMagazine. See the link for the whole article. https://alumninews.utoledo.edu/2020/02/17/utoledo-faculty-break-new-ground-in-research-attract-project-funding/

Dr. Bina Joe has been invited to lecture at the Joint Meeting of the European Society of Hypertension (ESH) and the International Society of Hypertension (ISH) that will be held in Glasgow, UK, from 29th May 2020 to 1st June 2020.

The lecture will be part of an oral session titled, "Experimental Hypertension".

Congratulations to the trainees from our department who have been selected for oral presentations at the 2020 Graduate Research Forum. Below are the topics each will be presenting on. In addition to attending the poster sessions at the forum, I hope that we can all attend our departmental students' oral presentations.

Ahmad Alimadadi (Joe Lab) - "Application of Artificial Intelligence via Machine Learning to Classify Clinical Cardiomyopathies Using RNA-Seq Data"

Saroj Chakraborty (Joe Lab) - "Bile acid metabolites modulate Hypertension"

Jonnelle Edwards (Wenceslau Lab) - "Formyl Peptide Receptor-1 Activation is Crucial for Spontaneous Hypertension in Dahl Salt Sensitive Rats"

Good luck to all!

Our faculty and students are adding to community outreach, which is one of the important activities of the University of Toledo. On Thursday of last week, several of our department's faculty and students participated as judges for the 2020 Science Fair at Ottawa Hills High School. Mr. Jeremy Nixon, one of the school's science teachers, organized the event.

Congratulations to Dr. Kumar and team! Their manuscript, "Altered Nutrient Status Reprograms Host Inflammation and Metabolic Health via Gut Microbiota" was accepted to Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry. (Impact Factor: 4.518)

The authors are: Rachel M. Golonka, Xia Xiao, Ahmed Abokor, Bina Joe, Matam Vijay-Kumar

Kudos to Juthika Mandal! Juthika, a trainee from Dr. Bina Joe's lab, has been invited for oral presentation not only at EB 2020 but also at the Hypertension 2020 Meeting in Scotland. The title of her abstract is, "Concerted diurnal rhythms of gut microbiota with salt-sensitive hypertension and renal inflammation".

A hearty congratulations to Saroj Chakraborty! Saroj is a trainee from Dr. Bina Joe's lab and has been selected to participate in the March 2020 Cell Modeling Hackathon.

The hackathon is funded through the National Science Foundation (NSF). Saroj and a team of other selected participants will work as a group to generate a model of any particular cell system of their choice.

Congratulations to the Wenceslau and Joe Labs for two of their trainees, Soyoung Cheon and Juthika Mandal who are invited for oral presentations at the upcoming Experimental Biology Meeting!

Abstract Title: Opioids Cause Vascular Remodeling via Changes in Cofilin-ERK Signaling: Female Mice Present Higher Risk of Developing Morphine-induced Cardiovascular Disease than Male Mice
Presenting Author: Soyoung Cheon (Trainee of Dr. Camilla Wenceslau)
Poster Presentation:
Session Title: Vascular Pharmacology I
Session Day: Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Oral Presentation:
Session Title: Symposium - ASPET Daily Datablitz - Tuesday
Session Day: Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Programming Society: American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics

Abstract Title: Concerted diurnal rhythms of gut microbiota with salt-sensitive hypertension and renal inflammation
Presenting Author: Juthika Mandal (Trainee of Dr. Bina Joe)
Poster Presentation:
Session Title: Diet, Nutrients and the Microbiome in Blood Pressure and Electrolyte Regulation
Session Day: Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Oral Presentation:
Session Title: Featured Topic - Diet, Nutrients and the Microbiome in Blood Pressure and Electrolyte Homeostasis and Allostasis
Session Day: Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Programming Society: The American Physiological Society

Also congratulations to the following high school through postdoctoral trainees who will be representing the department at the annual EB 2020 meeting. Congratulations to all!

Wenceslau Lab:

Abstract 1:
Title: Formyl Peptide Receptor-1 Activation is Crucial for Spontaneous and Salt-Induced Hypertension in Dahl Salt Sensitive Rats: Mitochondria vs. Microbiota
Presenting Author: Jonnelle Edwards
Poster Presentation:
Session Title: CV Section Young Investigators I
Session Day: Sunday, April 5, 2020
Programming Society: The American Physiological Society

Abstract 2:
Title: Female Rats Artificially Selected for Low and High Intrinsic Aerobic Capacity Swap Inflammatory Cascade in Resistance Arteries: Mechanisms of Cyclooxygenase-Derived Prostanoids
Presenting Author: Vaishnavi Aradhyula
Poster Presentation:
Session Title: Exercise, Health and Disease
Session Day: Sunday, April 5, 2020
Programming Society: The American Physiological Society

Abstract 3:
Title: Commensal microbiota are essential for vascular contractility mediated by actin polymerization
Presenting Author: Janara Furtado
Poster Presentation:
Session Title: Cardiovascular Disease and Metabolic Disorders II
Session Day: Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Programming Society: The American Physiological Society

Joe Lab:

Abstract 1:
Title: Gnotobiotic rats reveal an obligatory role of microbiota in blood pressure
Presenting Author: Saroj Chakraborty
Poster Presentation:
Session Title: CV Section Young Investigators II
Session Day: Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Programming Society: The American Physiological Society

Abstract 2:
Title: Sex differences in salt-responsive modulation of bile acids by microbiota regulates Hypertension
Presenting Author: Saroj Chakraborty
Poster Presentation:
Session Title: CV Section Young Investigators II
Session Day: Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Programming Society: The American Physiological Society

Abstract 3:
Title: &[beta]-Hydroxybutyrate (&[beta]OHB) Activates Gpr109a to Contribute to the Anti-vascular Aging Effect of Autophagy
Presenting Author: Cameron McCarthy
Poster Presentation:
Session Title: Heterocellular Communication in the Heart and Vasculature
Session Day: Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Programming Society: The American Physiological Society

Abstract 4:
Title: Reshaping commensal gut microbiota in early life lowers blood pressure potentially via a succinate mediated mechanism
Presenting Author: Saroj Chakraborty
Poster Presentation:
Session Title: Hypertension
Session Day: Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Programming Society: American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics

Abstract 5:
Title: A novel ex-vivo procedure for monitoring &[beta]-hydroxybutyrate (&[beta]OHB) production from isolated whole livers
Presenting Author: Avinash Singh
Poster Presentation:
Session Title: Liver Physiology and Pathophysiology
Session Day: Sunday, April 5, 2020
Programming Society: The American Physiological Society

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang! He has been selected to serve on the editorial board of Hypertension. His term will last three years.

Congratulations to Dr. Beng San Yeoh, who has accepted one of the Dean’s Postdoc to Faculty positions in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology. Congratulations Dr. Beng San Yeoh!

Kudos to Dr. Tao Yang for two recent manuscripts being accepted for publication!

"Transcriptomic signature of gut microbiome-contacting cells in colon of spontaneously hypertensive rats"
Journal: Physiological Genomics.
Authors: Tao Yang, Hongbao Li, Aline C. Oliveira, Ruby Goel, Elaine M. Richards, Carl J. Pepine and Mohan K. Raizada

"Probiotics prevent dysbiosis and the rise in blood pressure in genetic hypertension: role of short-chain fatty acids"
Journal: Molecular Nutrition & Food Research
Authors: Iñaki Robles-Vera, , Marta Toral, Néstor de la Visitación , Manuel Sánchez, Manuel Gómez-Guzmán, Miguel Romero, Tao Yang , José L. Izquierdo-Garcia , Rosario Jiménez, Jesús Ruiz-Cabello , Eduardo Guerra-Hernández , Mohan K Raizada , Francisco Pérez-Vizcaíno , Juan Duarte

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe and Blair Mell and collaborators in Australia! Their manuscript was accepted for publication to Journal of Pediatric Surgery.
Title: Interplay between collagenase and undescended testes in Adamts16 knockout rats
Authors: Gulcan Sarila, Tuya Bao, Sanduni Amaya Abeydeera, Ruili Li, Blair Mell, Bina Joe, Angelique Catubig, John

Congratulations to Masters student, Ahmad Alimadadi (Dr. Bina Joe's Lab) for his first publication and Dr. Xi Cheng, corresponding author! Our manuscript was accepted for publication in Genes.
Title: Meta-analysis of Dilated Cardiomyopathy Using Cardiac RNA-Seq
Transcriptomic Datasets
Authors: Ahmad Alimadadi, Patricia Munroe, Bina Joe, Xi Cheng

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe, students and colleagues who recently had a manuscript accepted for publication to JAHA: Journal of the American Heart Association! Title: Exposure to amoxicillin in early life is associated with changes in gut microbiota and reduction in blood pressure: Findings from a study on rat dams and offspring. Authors: Sarah Galla, PhD, Saroj Chakraborty, MS, Xi Cheng, PhD, Ji-Youn Yeo, PhD, Blair Mell, BS, Nathaline Chiu, BS, Camilla F. Wenceslau, PhD, Matam Vijay-Kumar, PhD, Bina Joe, PhD.

Several students and faculty of the Department are engaged in providing research training to honors high school students of Ottawa Hill High School. Dr. Joe was recently featured on WTOL News featuring this UT- Ottawa Hills partnership, which is also supported with funds for a research class at the school by ProMedica. https://www.wtol.com/article/life/family-focus/local-high-school-students-work-with-researchers-on-cancer-dna/512-b98e6325-d366-4467-849d-e5bb766f408e

Dr. Bina Joe has been selected as the 2020 Distinguished Mayerson-DiLuzio Visting Professor of the Department of Physiology at Tulane University in New Orleans. This award is presented to an outstanding physiologist who is also recognized for their unique relationships with the Tulane Physiology department and faculty. She will deliver a lecture and accept this award in late March. Congratulations!

Women & Philanthropy at the University of Toledo has funded Dr. Bina Joe and therefore, our Department has newly renovated lab space with state-of-the-art equipment establishing germ-free models to conduct critical experiments in microbiome research. Faculty, Staff and Students will host a reception and meet and greet with members of the Women & Philanthropy group, followed by a presentation, demonstration and tour of the new lab on Friday, November 15, 2019 from 4:30-7:30 p.m. The Lab is the first area of the Germ-Free Facility for Biomedical Research to come on-line. It will increase research opportunities and experimental learning in the College of Medicine. It will also establish increased capabilities centered around microbiome research as it impacts human health and focus attention on the ignored component of our bodies, i.e., microbiota.

Congratulations Dr. McCarthy, Dr. Wenceslau, Dr. Joe, Dr. Vijay-Kumar, Beng San Yeoh, and Dr. Hill for their recent publications!

Oxytocin Neurons Enable Melanocortin Regulation of Male Sexual Function in Mice. Semple E, Shalabi F, Hill JW. Mol Neurobiol. 2019 Sep;56(9):6310-6323. doi: 10.1007/s12035-019-1514-5. Epub 2019 Feb 12.

Inflammation induces stress erythropoiesis through heme-dependent activation of SPI-C. Bennett LF, Liao C, Quickel MD, Yeoh BS, Vijay-Kumar M, Hankey-Giblin P, Prabhu KS, Paulson RF. Sci Signal. 2019 Sep 10;12(598). pii: eaap7336. doi: 10.1126/scisignal.aap7336.

"Western-diet"-induced adipose inflammation requires a complex gut microbiota. Tran H, Bretin A, Adeshirlarijaney A, San Yeoh B, Vijay-Kumar M, Zou J, Denning TL, Chassaing B, Gewirtz AT. Cell Mol Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2019 Oct 5. pii: S2352-345X(19)30127-4. doi: 10.1016/j.jcmgh.2019.09.009. [Epub ahead of print]

Reconstitution of autophagy ameliorates vascular function and arterial stiffening in spontaneously hypertensive rats. McCarthy CG, Wenceslau CF, Calmasini FB, Klee NS, Brands MW, Joe B, Webb RC. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2019 Nov 1;317(5):H1013-H1027. doi: 10.1152/ajpheart.00227.2019. Epub 2019 Aug 30.

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe and colleagues! Their manuscript has been accepted for publication to Physiological Genomics. It is also selected to be featured as the cover article for the April 2020 edition!

Vertical selection for nuclear and mitochondrial genomes shapes gut microbiota and modifies risks for complex diseases. Contributing authors: Youjie Zhang, Sivarajan Kumarasamy, Blair Mell, Xi Cheng, Eric Morgan, Steven Britton, Matam Vijay-Kumar, Lauren Koch, and Bina Joe. Physiological Genomics

Congratulations to Dr. Cameron McCarthy! He has been selected to serve as a member of the Editorial Board of Hypertension. This is a big deal considering Hypertension is a top ranking journal in Cardiovascular Sciences.

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe! She received the Harriet Dustan Award sponsored by the Council on Hypertension. This award recognizes female investigators who make outstanding contributions in the field of Hypertension. The award was presented to her during the Hypertension Scientific Sessions in September in New Orleans.

Several members and trainees also participated in the Council and received awards:

Dr. Bina Joe: recipient of Harriet Dustan award and delivered Harriet Dustan Award Lecture and Poster Moderator of Clinical, Genetic and Epidemiological Mechanisms session
Dr. Matam Vijay-Kumar: Presented data during the Recent Advances: Microbiome session and participated in the Trainee Onsite Poster Competition
Dr. Lauren Koch: Participated in the Salt and Nutrition poster session and was a Moderator for Vascular Stiffness and Fibrosis session
Dr. Camilla Wenceslau: Participated in the CHAMP Lunch as a mentor and was Poster Moderator for Trainee Onsite Poster Competition
Dr. Sivarajan Kumarasamy: Poster Moderator for Trainee Onsite Poster Competition
Dr. Cameron McCarthy: Recipient of the Council on Hypertension New Investigator Award and presented data in the Vascular Biology and Function session and Poster Moderator for Pharmacology and Non-pharmacological Approaches session
Dr. Tao Yang: Recipient of the Council on Hypertension New Investigator Award and presented data in both the Hypertension in Pregnancy and Offspring session and Regulation of Blood Pressure by the Central Nervous System session
Usman Ashraf: Presented data in Mechanisms in Chronic Kidney Disease and Fibrosis session and attended the CHAMP Lunch as a mentee
Jonnelle Edwards: Presented data in the Inflammation and Immune Mechanisms session and attended the CHAMP Lunch as a mentee
Shaunak Roy: Recipient of Council on Hypertension Trainee Advocacy Committee New Investigator Award and presented data in the Vascular Stiffness and Fibrosis session and attended the CHAMP Lunch as a mentee
Jeremy Tomcho: Participated in Trainee Onsite Poster Competition and attended the CHAMP Lunch as a mentee

A book chapter that Dr. Bina Joe wrote with Dr. John Rapp has been accepted for publication in Comprehensive Physiology.

"Dissecting Epistatic QTL for Blood Pressure in Rats: Congenic Strains Versus Heterogeneous Stocks, a Reality Check"
John P. Rapp and Bina Joe*

Dr. Bina Joe was invited to present a ‘State-of-the-art’ Lecture at the Canadian Hypertension Congress held in Edmonton, Canada from Sept 25-28. My talk was titled ‘Pressure from the Bugs Within: Microbiomic and Metabolomic effects on hypertension’.

The Canadian Hypertension Congress is Canada’s largest national scientific and educational conference of its kind and is designed to incorporate today’s needs and expectations of scientists, researchers, and clinicians. This year’s theme was “A Whole-Patient Approach” and covered the topics in hypertension and adjacent conditions for whole-patient care listed here:

Cardiovascular Disease (Stroke, Heart Failure, Atrial Fibrillation)
Dementia
Diabetes
Thresholds & Targets
Kidney Disease
Obesity

The Congress brings together leading minds from various disciplines and specialties, with more than 500 of Canada’s leading hypertension scientists and researchers, specialists, physicians, pharmacists, nurses, dietitians, health experts, and public health officials in attendance.

Dr. Bina Joe, Distinguished University Professor and Chair of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, is featured in The Academic Minute, which is available as a podcast from NPR, on the Academic Minute website and shared on Inside Higher Ed, features researchers from colleges and universities in the US and all around the world, bringing updates on what’s new and exciting in the academy and how academic research contributes to solving the world’s problems and to serving the public good. The Academic Minute is also available at:

·The Academic Minute airs on the WAMC Northeast Public Radio at 7:30 a.m. and 3:56 p.m. weekdays. You should be able to listen live here: https://www.wamc.org/listen-live-wamc

·Audio and the written script will be posted on the Academic Minute website: https://academicminute.org/

·Inside Higher Ed shares each day’s Academic Minute here: http://www.insidehighered.com/academic-minute

·If you’re on Twitter, you can follow the Academic Minute at @AcademicMinute

·On Facebook, Academic Minute is https://www.facebook.com/AcademicMinute/

·Additional information on radio stations broadcasting Academic Minute are here: https://academicminute.org/about/reach/

http://news.utoledo.edu/index.php/09_23_2019/utoledo-researchers-take-over-national-academic-research-program-this-week

Congratulations to Dr. Xi Cheng! He was awarded as an APS Publications Star Reviewer - well done!

Congratulations to Drs. Bina Joe, Camilla Wenceslau and Cameron McCarthy! They have all been invited by the American Journal of Hypertension to become members of their Editorial Board. The initial terms, starting January 2020 are for three years, with the possibility of additional three year terms.

The Department welcomed 4 high school students from Northview High School into the newly developed College Credit Program which started this fall semester. The program provides exposure to basic science research in the biomedical sciences. We welcome Shrey Gupta, Evangelina Louis, Daven Sarikonda, and Avinash Singh who will be working in the Laboratories of Drs. Chakravarti, Vijay-Kumar, and Joe.

Friday, August 23rd, the Department welcomed five new students into the Molecular Medicine Track. They are from 5 different countries representing 3 continents! There was a short presentation by Drs. Joe and Beavis followed by lunch and fellowship. The MOME Track students joining us this fall are pictured below from left:

Juthika Mandal                                              PhD (from Bangladesh)
Xue Mei                                                        PhD (from China)
Fathima Dhilhan Mohammed Faleel PhD (from Sri Lanka)
Emily Waigi                                                    MSBS (from Kenya)
Syed Hasan                                                    MSBS (from USA)

Welcome!

Congratulations to Dr. Tao Yang! He has been selected to receive the HTN New Investigator Award at the AHA Conference on Hypertension in New Orleans to be held in September for his abstract titled, "Maternal high blood pressure control persistently alters gut-brain communication and attenuates hypertension of offspring". This award includes a monetary prize plus complimentary registration to the conference. His abstract has also been selected for podium presentation at the Council for the same abstract as well as another abstract titled, "Gut dysbiosis impairs serotonergeic gut-brain axis and increased blood pressure". Well done!

Congratulations to Dr. Cameron McCarthy from the Joe Lab! His manuscript was accepted for publication in AJP Heart and Circulatory Physiology. Reconstitution of autophagy ameliorates vascular function and arterial stiffening in spontaneously hypertensive rats. Cameron McCarthy, Camilla Wenceslau, Fabiano Calmasini, Nicole Klee, Michael Brands, Bina Joe, and R. Clinton Webb

Congratulations to Blair from the Joe Lab! Her manuscript was accepted in PLOS One. QTL mapping of rat blood pressure loci on RNO1 within a homologous region linked to human hypertension on HSA15. Blair Mell, Xi Cheng, Bina Joe

A warm welcome to Dr. Tao Yang and Dr. Guannan Zhou! They are from the University of Florida. Dr. Tang is a Dean’s Postdoctoral to Faculty Fellow and will be working in the Joe lab. Dr. Yang is funded for his research on microbiota through the Biocodex foundation. Dr. Zhou is a Postdoctoral Fellow and will be working in Dr. Lauren Koch’s lab.

Kudos to Dr. Cameron McCarthy! He has been selected to receive the HTN New Investigator Travel Award of the Hypertension 2019 Scientific Sessions! The award will be presented to him during a ceremony in New Orleans. ABSTRACT: Control 59, Beta-Hydroxybutyrate Synthesis Contributes to the Anti-Vascular Aging Effect of Autophagy Well done!

Hearty congratulations to Dr. Cheng! His grant titled Genome-wide investigation of circular RNAs in alcohol-related phenotypes using the Hybrid Rat Diversity Panel, has been funded by the NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse) Center of Excellence in Omics, Systems Genetics, and the Addictome.

The APS published a feature about Dr. Bina Joe's work on their website. View the whole article here: https://www.the-aps.org/detail/person/bina-joe-phd?SSO=Y

Congratulations to Dr. Cameron McCarthy, he has been notified that their abstracts for the AHA 2019 Scientific Sessions Council for Hypertension have been accepted for oral presentation. The meeting takes place in New Orleans, September 5-8.

Dr. Bina Joe has been selected to receive the Harriet Dustan Award sponsored by the Council on Hypertension. This award recognizes female investigators who make outstanding contributions in the field of Hypertension. The award will be presented during the Hypertension Scientific Sessions in September in New Orleans.

Nineteen High School students, 47 volunteers and 5 days is what it took to successfully complete the first Pre-Med Summer Camp organized by our Department! The camp was led by Dr. Ritu Chakravarti. We had raving reviews from both the students and their parents on the content and organization of this camp. Students came from places as far as California, Texas, Indiana and also from several schools in the Toledo area. Besides getting exposure to the clinical facets, they appreciated the opportunity to conduct hands-on experiments in genomic medicine for a whole week! Sincere thanks to the 5 laboratories that participated: Dr. Chakravarti, Dr. Wenceslau, Dr. Kumar, Dr. Kumarasamy and Dr. Joe. Special thanks to faculty, staff and students of the UT community who also contributed their time for our camp.

Dr. Bina Joe was recently awarded a grant in the amount of $65,000 from Women & Philanthropy for the Women & Philanthropy Gnotobiotic (Germ-Free) Rat Facility for Biomedical Research.

The Center for Hypertension and Precision Medicine’s annual World Hypertension Day display was a successful day of bringing hypertension awareness to staff and visitors of the Health Science Campus. Many stopped to check their blood pressure and to receive additional information regarding hypertension and high blood pressure. A big thank you to CHPM trainees, Rachel Golonka (Kumar Lab) and Stephanie Clark (Joe Lab) and CHPM secretary, Melody Knotts for making this activity a success!

May 20th Dr. Joe had the pleasure of speaking at the Toledo Rotary Club, Downtown Toledo. The talk was titled ‘Pressure from the Bugs Within’. It was well attended by about 250 Rotarians and others and was well received in the community.

May 2-4, 2019 many members and trainees from our Department and the Center for Hypertension and Precision Medicine had the opportunity to attend the 2nd annual Gull Lake Regional Hypertension meeting. It was a valuable experience networking with other researchers in the hypertension field from around the Ohio/Michigan areas. Many of our Department members and trainees presented their research. It was a delight to hear from the organizers from Michigan State University and Faculty members from other Institutions that our student presentations were among the best. This, to me, speaks volumes to the significant improvements in training our students, especially through the TLC. Congratulations to the individual PIs who put their time and effort in conducting cutting-edge research and for being excellent mentors.

Dr. Bina Joe had the opportunity to attend an Honors Class Research Celebration of the Ottawa Hills High School held at the ProMedica Steel Plant in Downtown Toledo. About 10 years ago, Mr. Jeremy Nixon, the Honors Biology Teacher at Ottawa Hills High School spent his summer conducting research in her laboratory as part of an NSF funded program. Since then, he has developed a Research Class where select high school students are required to conduct research as part of their honors curriculum. Dr. Hill and Dr. Hinds from the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology also participated in mentoring some of these young people.

Saroj Chakraborty, trainee of Dr. Bina Joe from the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, was recently featured in the newest edition of The Science Breaker on his work about the relationship between metabolism and hypertension. The article can be viewed here:

https://www.thesciencebreaker.org/breaks/health-physiology/a-novel-mechanism-of-metabolic-regulation-of-blood-pressure

Congratulations to MOME Track MD/PhD candidate Sarah Galla (Joe Lab) for placing 2^nd in oral presentation at the 2019 Graduate Research Forum and MOME Track PhD candidate Rachel Golonka (Vijay-Kumar Lab) for placing 3^rd poster presentation!

Dr. Bina Joe and Dr. Jennifer Hill have been selected to receive the President’s Award for Excellence in Grantmanship and will receive the awards and attend a reception at Dr. Gaber’s home in April.

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe! She has been nominated and selected by the Physiological Omic Group to be the recipient of the 2019 Distinguished Lectureship Award! The award recognizes a distinguished lecturer in the area of physiological -omics and she will also present the distinguished lecture at the Physiological -Omics Group Symposium at the Experimental Biology 2019 meeting.

Congratulations to Sarah Galla from the Joe Lab! Her research story , "Researchers study link between bacteria, blood pressure", was published in the Toledo Blade, January 7, 2019.

https://www.toledoblade.com/medical/2019/01/07/university-of-toledo-bacteria-blood-pressure-medicine-research

Congratulations to Dr. Cameron McCarthy! He was selected by the American Physiological Society-Cardiovascular Section awards committee as a finalist for the 2019 APS-Cardiovascular Section Outstanding Postdoctoral Trainee Award. His application associated with abstract, “BetaHOB Increases Nitric Oxide Synthase Activity in Resistance Arteries from Dahl Salt Sensitive Rats”, was amongst the most highly rated applications submitted to the committee.

He will orally present his research as part of the Featured Topic Session, “Cardiovascular Section Young Investigator Competition" which will occur on Monday, April 8, 2019.

Well done!

Dr. Bina Joe and Saroj Chakraborty were featured in this article of the Toledo Blade:

https://www.toledoblade.com/news/medical/2018/10/22/University-of-Toledo-finds-chemical-that-could-help-people-lower-their-blood-pressure/stories/20181019093

Congratulations!

Please enjoy this WTOL news video featuring Dr. Bina Joe and student, Saroj Chakraborty: http://www.wtol.com/2018/10/17/utmc-researchers-working-controlling-blood-pressure-without-exercise/

Please enjoy this article about research in the Joe lab: http://utnews.utoledo.edu/index.php/10_17_2018/a-no-pain-gain-to-combat-hypertension-ut-research-finds-way-to-mimic-exercises-blood-pressure-lowering-effects

A big congratulations to Saroj Chakraborty from the Joe Lab! His publication in Cell Reports titled, "Salt-Responsive Metabolite, β-Hydroxybutyrate, Attenuates Hypertension" is now online.

View the links here:

https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/fulltext/S2211-1247(18)31503-1

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-10/uot-nsr101618.php

Congratulations to Sarah Galla, an MD/PhD student in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology. Her article titled, “Disparate Effects of Antibiotics on Hypertension”was selected for The American Physiological Society October APSselect collection for distinction in scholarship! This includes authors: Sarah Galla, Saroj Chakraborty, Xi Cheng, Jiyoun Yeo, Blair Mell, Helen Zhang, Anna V Mathew, Matam Vijay-Kumar, and Bina Joe. Well done, everyone!

Congratulations to Saroj (Dr. Bina Joe's lab) and collaborators, for having their manuscript accepted to Cell Reports! The title of the manuscript is, “Salt-responsive Metabolite, b-hydroxybutyrate, Attenuates Hypertension” and the authors are: Chakraborty, S, Galla, S, Cheng X, Yeo, J, Mell, B, Singh V, Yeoh BS, Saha P, Mathew, AV, Vijay-Kumar, M, Joe B. Well done!

Dr. Bina Joe, Chair of Physiology and Pharmacology was recently featured in the International Society of Hypertension’s Women in Hypertension Spotlight. See more here: http://ish-world.com/womens-spotlight/i/Dr-Bina-Joe/

The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute awarded Dr. Joe a $2.64 million grant to study the role of gut microbiota in hypertension. Dr. Joe pioneered the discovery of the link between gut microbiota and inherited hypertension. The new grant titled ‘Genetic, Epigenetic and Dietary Salt effects on Microbiota and Hypertension’ aims to follow up on this pioneering discovery to study the various mechanisms by which gut microbiota contribute to the inheritance and progression of salt-sensitive forms of inherited hypertension. Other faculty collaborators on this grant are Dr. Matam Vijay-Kumar and Dr. Ritu Chakravarti.

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Sarah Galla from Dr. Bina Joe’s lab! Her work has been featured in a press release from the APS. Congratulations and well done! http://www.the-aps.org/mm/hp/Audiences/Public-Press/2018/49.html

Congratulations to Dr. Camilla Wenceslau and Dr. Cam McCarthy, whose manuscript, "Increase in soluble protein oligomers trigger the innate immune system promoting inflammation and vascular dysfunction in the pathogenesis of sepsis", was published in Clinical Science!

Congratulations to Dr. Cheng, who is a co-author on a manuscript that was accepted for publication in American Journal of Physiology. The manuscript is entitled, "Salt-sensitive (Rapp) Rats from Envigo Spontaneously Develop Accelerated Hypertension Independent of Ovariectomy on a Low Sodium Diet" and contributing authors are: Amrita Pai, Crystal West, Aline Maria Arlindo de Souza, Xi Cheng, David West, Hong Ji, Xie Wu, Chris Baylis, and Kathryn Sandberg.

The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute awarded Dr. Bina Joe, Distinguished University Professor and Chair of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology and Director of the Center for Hypertension and Precision Medicine, a major, $2.64 million, grant to study the role of gut microbiota in hypertension. Dr. Joe pioneered the discovery of the link between gut microbiota and inherited hypertension. The new grant titled ‘Genetic, Epigenetic and Dietary Salt effects on Microbiota and Hypertension’ aims to follow up on this pioneering discovery to study the various mechanisms by which gut microbiota contribute to the inheritance and progression of salt-sensitive forms of inherited hypertension. Other faculty collaborators on this grant from the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology are Dr. Matam Vijay-Kumar, Associate Professor & Director of the UT Microbiome Consortium and Dr. Ritu Chakravarti, Assistant Professor.

Congratulations to Saroj Chakraborty, a PhD student in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology working in Dr. Bina Joe’s laboratory, who won the second best poster award at the 45^th Midwest Pharmacology Colloquium held at Michigan State University on June 1, 2018. This long-standing Pharmacology Colloquium of the Midwest Pharmacology Departments is jointly organized and comprised of students and faculty of the Departments of Pharmacology in The University of Michigan, The Michigan State University, Wayne State University and The University of Toledo College of Medicine.

Dr. Bina Joe, from the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology and the Center for Hypertension and Precision Medicine, delivered the Keynote Address titled ‘Manipulating Microbiota for the treatment of Hypertension: Hype?” at the 2018 Michigan Hypertension Meeting, held May 3-4, 2018 in Gull Lake, MI. Also invited for oral presentations were faculty and fellows from the Center for Hypertension and Precision Medicine, Dr. Lauren Koch, Dr. Xi Cheng, Mr. Saroj Chakraborty and Ms. Sarah Galla.

Congratulations to Drs. Joe, Hinds and Lecka-Czernik! They were all recommended as 3 of 25 faculty members to be recognized for outstanding contributions to University scholarship and creative activity over the past three years.

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe and lab! Their manuscript, “Fine mapping of epistatic genetic determinants of blood pressure on rat chromosome 5”, was accepted for publication in the Journal of Hypertension. The authors are: Harshal Waghulde, Resmi Pillai, Xi Cheng, Ying Nie, Blair Mell, Bina Joe

Congratulations to the Joe Lab! Their manuscript has been accepted for publication in PLOS Genetics.
"Positional cloning of quantitative trait nucleotides for blood pressure and cardiac QT-interval by targeted CRISPR/Cas9 editing of a novel long non-coding RNA" Xi Cheng, Harshal Waghulde, Blair Mell, Eric E. Morgan, Shondra M. Pruett-Miller, Bina Joe

Well done!

Congratulations to Dr. Xi Cheng and Dr. Bina Joe! Their manuscript, "Circular RNAs in Rat Models of Cardiovascular and Renal Diseases" was accepted for publication in Physiological Genomics. Congratulations to Dr. Haller, whose manuscript, “Circulating CD40 and sCD40L Predict Changes in Renal Function in Subjects with Chronic Kidney Disease" Jeffrey X. Xie, BS, Helen Alderson, MD, James Ritchie, MD Philip A. Kalra, MD, Yanmei Xie, MA, Kaili Ren, Ph.D, Hanh Nguyen, MA, Tian Chen, Ph.D, Pamela Brewster, MA, Rajesh Gupta, MD, Lance D. Dworkin, MD, Deepak Malhotra, MD, Ph.D., Christopher J. Cooper, MD, Jiang Tian, Ph.D., Steven T. Haller, Ph.D. was accepted for publication in Scientific Reports.

He also received a grant from The University of Toledo Medical Research Society. Well done!

An article by Dr. Bina Joe and lab on circRNAs was featured by the American Physiological Society. Click the link to view the article. http://www.the-aps.org/mm/hp/Audiences/Public-Press/2017/64.html

Well done!

Congratulations to Dr. Xi Cheng and Dr. Bina Joe! Their manuscript, "Circular RNAs in Rat Models of Cardiovascular and Renal Diseases" was accepted for publication in Physiological Genomics.

Sarah Galla, Eric Zhang and Saroj Chakraborty were all invited to give podium presentations at the 2017 Complex Trait Consortium and Rat Genome joint meeting in Memphis this week (6-12-17 through 6-16-17). Congratulations to each of you!

Congratulations to Xi Cheng, who successfully defended his dissertation, May 22nd! Well done, Xi! We are very proud of you!

Congratulations to Xi Cheng! He has been selected for the 2017 Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Sciences Program Outstanding Student Award which will be presented at the upcoming Class of 2017 Graduation Awards Ceremony.

It is with the highest pride and excitement we announce that Dr. Bina Joe has been selected as a Distinguished University Professor at our University! Congratulations, Dr. Joe, we are proud of you and your accomplishments!

Congratulations to Sarah Galla!

Her abstract was selected for oral presentation by the American Physiological Society Physiological Genomics (PG) Group's Pre-EB2017 Annual Research Conference to be held in Chicago on Saturday, April 22, 2017.

Congrats to Eric from the Joe Lab! He has been accepted to give a poster presentation during the Chicago EB 2017 meeting, to be held in April.

Abstract Title: Gut Microbiotal Dysbiosis and Increased Risk for Complex Polygenic Diseases Emerge with Genomic Selection for Low Aerobic Exercise Capacity

Congrats to Saroj Chakraborty! He has been accepted to give an oral presentation during the Chicago EB 2017 meeting, to be held in April.

Abstract Title: A Novel CRISPR/Cas9 Knock-in Rat Model Defines A Polymorphic Variant of Secreted Phosphoprotein 2 as A Quantitative Trait Nucleotide Linked to The Heritability of Blood Pressure

Congrats to Sarah Galla! She has been accepted to give a poster presentation during the Chicago EB 2017 meeting, to be held in April.

Abstract Title: Quantitative Proteomic Analysis of Endothelial Cells in G-protein Coupled Estrogen Receptor (Gper1) Knockout Rats

Congratulations to Sivarajan Kumarasamy, Sumeet Solanki, Oluwatomisin T. Atolagbe, Bina Joe, Lutz Birnbaumer and Guillermo Vazquez! Their manuscript, “Deep transcriptomic profiling of M1 macrophages lacking Trpc3”, was accepted for publication in Scientific Reports. Well done!

A review written by the Joe lab was just accepted for publication! The title is "Microbiotal-Host Interactions and Hypertension." Authors: Sarah Galla, Saroj Chakraborty, Blair Mell, Matam Vijay-Kumar, and Bina Joe. It will be published in Physiology. Congrats!

Congratulations to Xi Cheng, whose research article was published in the Science and Health Section of the Blade! See the article here: http://www.toledoblade.com/Medical/2016/12/05/UT-students-studying-genetic-link-to-hypertension.html

Please enjoy a new video highlighting the 'Hot topics in Hypertension' session of the American Heart Association Council on Hypertension Annual meeting held in Orlando, FL.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5GMmXcHQ8o&list=PLzCpCvMeTCs42B2_xHhm_2LBJNQW5Wp3j&index=6

Our Chair and Director Dr. Bina Joe was an invited speaker at this session and she is interviewed about the topic of 'Microbiota and Hypertension'.

The associated executive summary of the Working group of the NHLBI on 'Microbiota and Hypertension' is available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/research/reports/role-microbiota-blood-pressure-regulation-executive-summary

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe! The manuscript, ‘Deficiency of Stearoyl CoA Desaturase-1 Aggravates Colitogenic Potential of Adoptively Transferred Effector T cells’, by Beng San Yeoh, Piu Saha, Vishal Singh, Xia Xiao, Yun Ying, Jairam Vanamala, Mary Kennett, Kevin Harvatine, Bina Joe, and Matam Vijay-Kumar has been accepted for publication in the American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology.

The Department of Physiology and Pharmacology held their first Annual Retreat, August 26, 2016, at Olander Park. Many awards were received by faculty and students. Please click the link for pictures and a list of awards : http://wordpress.utoledo.edu/med/2016/09/01/physiology-and-pharmacology-honors-faculty-students/

Congratulations to Dr. Bina Joe and Blair Mell! They co-authored a manuscript "Parathyroid hormone induces expression and proteolytic processing of Rankl in primary murine osteoblasts", and it has been accepted for publication in the journal Bone.

Congratulations to Harshal Waghulde! Harshal successfully defended his thesis on August 1, 2016. He is pictured with his advisor, Dr. Bina Joe, as well as Drs. Kathryn Eisenmann, Jiang Tian and Guillermo Vazquez.

Congratulations Dr. Bina Joe! In 2014 the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute convened a Working Group (WG) to discuss new emerging aspects of the impact of salt on human health and disease, with emphasis on hypertension. The WG brought together experts from a variety of scientific backgrounds. Dr. Bina Joe was among those experts and as part of this WG, she co-authored the recently released WG's review report published in Hypertension. Please, find the link to the full article below, and join us in congratulating Dr. Joe for such a high distinction!

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Working Group Report on Salt in Human Health and Sickness: Building on the Current Scientific Evidence. Oh YS, Appel LJ, Galis ZS, Hafler DA, He J, Hernandez AL, Joe B, Karumanchi SA, Maric-Bilkan C, Mattson D, Mehta NN, Randolph G, Ryan M, Sandberg K, Titze J, Tolunay E, Toney GM, Harrison DG.

http://hyper.ahajournals.org/content/68/2/281.full

Congratulations to Ying Nie (Joe Lab), in collaboration with Dr. Beata Lecka-Czernick’s Lab, for their manuscript, "High resolution mapping of a novel rat blood pressure locus on chromosome 9 to a region containing the Spp2 gene and co-localization of a QTL for bone mass", being accepted for publication by Physiological Genomics!

Congratulations to Xi Cheng (Joe lab) whose manuscript "Pleiotropic Effect of a High Resolution Mapped Blood Pressure QTL on Tumorigenesis" was accepted for publication!

Congratulations to Harshal Waghulde (Dr. Bina Joe's Lab), whose research article was recently published in the Science and Health Section of the Toledo Blade. Well done, Harshal!

The article can be viewed here: http://www.toledoblade.com/Medical/2016/03/07/Gene-word-processing-used-to-study-high-blood-pressure-1.html

On Thursday, January 14, 2016, at a Faculty Recognition Ceremony held at the Radisson at UTMC Mahogany Room, Dr. Bina Joe, Professor and Chair of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology and Director of the Center for Hypertension and Precision Medicine, received the 2015 College of Medicine and Life Sciences Dean’s Award for Research Excellence in Sustained Research.

Congratulations Dr. Joe!

Congratulations! to Ying Nie who successfully defended her Ph.D. thesis on May 1, 2015, "Positional Mapping for Blood Pressure Loci on Rat Chromosome 9" Advisor: Dr. Bine Joe

Congratulations! to Resmi Pillai who successfully defended her Ph.D. thesis on April 30, 2015, "High Resolution Substitution Mapping for Genetic Elements Controlling Blood Pressure Located on Rat Chromosomes 5 and 10" Advisor: Dr. Bine Joe

Congratulations! to Dr. Bina Joe, she received the Outstanding Research Award at the Outstanding Faculty & Adviser Awards Ceremony on April 27, 2015.

Congratulations! to Xi Cheng, a graduate student in Dr. Bina Joe's lab, for having his abstract "A CRISPR/Cas9 System Based Targeted Disruption of a Novel Rat Long Non-coding RNA in a Rat Genetic Model of Hypertension," accepted for oral presentation at the American Physiological Society (APS) organized session, "Trainee Highlights in Physiological Genomics" at the Experimental Biology 2015 Meeting.

Congratulations! to Harshal Waghulde, a graduate student in Dr. Bina Joe's lab, for having his abstract "Development of Novel Gper-1 Knock-out Rat Model Using a Modified CRISPR/Cas9 Technology," accepted for oral presentation at the American Physiological Society (APS) organized session, "Physiological Effects of Sex Chromosome Complementation and Chromosome Y Genetic Variants" at the Experimental Biology 2015 Meeting.

Congratulations! to Dr. Bina Joe, New Publication in Nature Communications "Cross-talk between two transcription factors regulates blood pressure." See article in the March 2015 JCCTR Newsletter

Congratulations! to Dr. Bina Joe for being named the Shining Star Award winner for Outstanding Research by the Office of the Provost at the University of Toledo. View Video

Congratulations! To Dr. Bina Joe for the appointment as Editor-in-Chief of an American Physiological Society journal. Dr. Joe will assume office as the Editor of Physiological Genomics beginning July 1, 2015.

Congratulations! to Bina Joe, Ph.D. who has been named the 2014 Lewis K. Dahl Memorial Lecturer by The American Heart Association's Council on High Blood Pressure Research (soon to be Hypertension). The Lewis K. Dahl Memorial Lecture was established in 1988 by the Council for High Blood Pressure Research in honor of Dr. Dahl's pioneering work on the relations between salt, the kidney, and hypertension, and his establishment of a major genetically based experimental model of hypertension, the Dahl salt-sensitive rat. Dr. Joe will attend the conference in San Francisco, CA, September 9-12, 2014.

Video - 2014 Lewis K Dahl Memorial Lecture Bina Joe, PhD, FAHA

Congratulations! to Bina Joe, Ph.D. who has been selected as the recipient of the 2014 American Physiological Society (APS) Physiological Genomics Distinguished Service Award. This award is given to recognize those who have made outstanding contribution to the development of the APS Physiological Genomics group.