AJP-Heart and Circulatory Physiology Podcast

AJP-Heart and Circulatory Physiology has been championing women’s health research for many years, and in 2021 launched a special call for papers, which later became a standing collection in the journal, that has amassed over 100 peer reviewed publications focused on women’s cardiovascular health. In 2024 the American Physiological Society launched the Women’s Health Research Initiative aimed at addressing critical scientific gaps underlying health conditions that uniquely impact women. In this episode, Dr. Jason Carter (Baylor College) interviews authors Jenna Stone (McMaster University), Dr. Maureen McDonald (McMaster University), and Dr. Kerrie Moreau (University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus) about their...

In our latest episode, Deputy Editor Dr. Zam Kassiri (University of Alberta) interviews authors Dr. German González (Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina), Dr. Rebecca Ritchie (Monash University), Dr. Pooneh Bagher (University of Nebraska Medical Center), and Dr. Hiroe Toba (Kyoto Pharmaceutical University) about the latest Guidelines in Cardiovascular Research article by Sveeggen et al. that helps researchers tackle the sources of variability in experimental models of diet-induced cardiometabolic syndrome. This podcast is a must-listen for any researcher using a diet-induced food model of disease. The authors discuss different food composition with details about type and source of fat an...

Why is a broad approach that works with iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes so important to understanding molecular mechanisms underlying calcium homeostasis and arrhythmias? In this episode, Associate Editor Dr. Petra Kleinbongard (University of Duisburg-Essen) interviews author Dr. Katrin Streckfuss-Bömeke (University Medical Center Göttingen) and expert Dr. Melanie Paillard (Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1) about the new study by Ajmail et al. While arrhythmias in calcium transients are easy to detect by human perception, quantifying arrhythmias in a computer-readable manner is often difficult. To tackle the challenge, the authors developed an open-source program called Arrhythpy that quantifies and classifies confocal microscopy-based Flu...

What is the main driver of sex differences in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF)? In our latest episode, Associate Editor Dr. Petra Kleinbongard (University of Duisburg-Essen) interviews lead author Dr. Matthieu Ruiz (Montreal Heart Institute) and expert Dr. Catherine Mounier (Université du Québec à Montréal) about the new study by David et al. that explores sex-specific effects of B-vitamin supplementation on heart failure with reduced ejection fraction in mice subjected to pressure overload. The research by Ruiz and co-authors found that B-vitamins improved survival rates, cardiac function, and reduced fibrosis in female mice. However, male mice exhi...

In our latest episode, Associate Editor Dr. Jason Carter (Baylor University, Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences) interviews authors Dr. Alex Carll and Brittany Reynolds (University of Louisville School of Medicine), along with expert Dr. Jessica Bradshaw (University of North Texas Health Science Center), about the recent work by Reynolds et al. There are an estimated 68 million e-cigarette users worldwide, and the use of e-cigarettes during pregnancy has been on a steady rise in recent years. Evidence shows that 1 in 5 smokers or ex-smokers who become pregnant use e-cigarettes during pregnancy, yet the effects of vaping on maternal health...

How can we better understand the developmental nature of cardiovascular disease across the life course and improve the health of people who experience chronic early life stress? In this episode Dr. Nathaniel Jenkins (University of Iowa) interviews lead author Dr. Annemarie Wentzel (North-West University, South African Medical Research Council Unit for Hypertension and Cardiovascular Disease) and expert Dr. Romain Harmancey (The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston) about the study by Wentzel et al. which found that stress, expressed as a cumulative allostatic load score, impacted the microvasculature, macrovasculature, and central cardiac structure and function on a...

The literature shows that the incidence of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) increases significantly in postmenopausal women, but how can researchers study the underlying mechanisms? In our latest episode, Dr. Jonathan Kirk (Loyola University Chicago) interviews lead author Dr. Mei Methawasin (University of Missouri, Columbia) and expert Dr. Glen Pyle (University of Guelph) about the recent study by Methawasin and co-authors investigating sex differences, menopause and HFpEF. The authors created an animal model that resembles HFpEF in women undergoing natural menopause by using 4-vinylcyclohexene dioxide (VCD) to induce “ovary-intact” menopause, combined with the 2hit regimen (HFpEF inducing regi...

What is the role of ferroptosis, programmed cell death characterized by intracellular iron accumulation and lipid peroxidation, in the context of ischemic injury related to heart transplantation? In this episode, Associate Editor Dr. Amanda LeBlanc (University of Louisville) interviews authors Dr. Kenneth Liao and Dr. Nandan Mondal (both at Baylor College of Medicine), along with expert Dr. Zachary Kiernan (Virginia Commonwealth University) about the latest study by Li et al. The authors found that prolonged cold storage increases the susceptibility of hearts donated after brain death (DBD) to ferroptotic cell death. In contrast, however, the authors found that warm...

Can hormonal fluctuations across a single menstrual cycle alter arterial wave reflections and wasted pressure effort? In this episode, Associate Editor Dr. Jonathan Kirk (Loyola University Chicago) interviews author Dr. Ninette Shenouda (University of Delaware) and expert Dr. Sarah Baker (Mayo Clinic) about the latest study by Shenouda et al. investigating sex differences and ventricular arterial interactions. The authors wanted to understand how strategic phases of the menstrual cycle might affect the relationship between the left ventricle (LV) and the arterial system, as this relationship is crucial for maintaining adequate cardiac output and blood pressure. Given the established beneficial...

In this episode, Deputy Editor Dr. Zamaneh Kassiri (University of Alberta) interviews authors Dr. Oliver H. Wearing (University of British Columbia), Dr. Naomi C. Chesler (University of California Irvine), Dr. Mitchel J. Colebank (University of South Carolina), Dr. Timothy A. Hacker (University of Wisconsin-Madison), Dr. John N. Lorenz (University of Cincinnati), and Dr. Christopher R. West (University of British Columbia) about their new Guidelines in Cardiovascular Research article. This must-read Guidelines article provides a thorough overview of ventricular pressure-volume (PV) measurements in the mouse heart. PV measurements are an invasive method for assessment of heart function, and if done...

In our latest episode, Dr. Jeff Saucerman (University of Virginia) interviews authors Dr. Naomi Chesler (University of California, Irvine) and Dr. Mitchel Colebank (University of South Carolina) about their new Guidelines in Cardiovascular Research article on incorporating mechanistic modeling into the analysis of experimental and clinical data to identify possible mechanisms of (ab)normal cardiovascular physiology. The authors’ goal is to provide a consensus document that identifies best practices for in silico computational modeling in cardiovascular research. These guidelines provide the necessary methods for mechanistic model development, model analysis, and formal model calibration using fundamentals from statistics. Colebank et al...

In this episode of Behind the Bench, we are talking with Hannah Cizauskas about her first, first-author article published in AJP-Heart and Circ. Born and raised in Detroit, Hannah moved to Chicago for what she thought would be just one rotation outside of the cancer genetics field. This led Hannah to work on a project related to atrial fibrillation and contractile dysfunction in Dave Barefield’s lab at Loyola University Chicago’s Cellular and Molecular Physiology Department. Now in the fourth year of her PhD, Hannah is a dog mom to Jake, she loves reading STEMinist novels, and she is r...

In our latest episode, Executive Editor Kara Hansell Keehan interviews lead author Dr. Michaela Patterson and first author Kaelin Akins (both at the Medical College of Wisconsin) along with expert Dr. Ana Vujic (University of Cambridge) about the new study by Akins et al. Given that the heart has limited regenerative potential, repairing damage to cardiomyocytes after a heart attack is particularly challenging. Cardioregeneration researchers worldwide are searching for potential targets that can stimulate cardiomyocyte proliferation and cardiac regeneration. However, because cardiomyocytes can undergo incomplete cell division, multinucleation, and polyploidization, it is difficult to study true cardiomyocyte proliferation. Akins...

What is the impact of central insulin on muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) and vascular conductance in the absence of peripheral insulin delivery? Listen as Associate Editor Dr. Jason Carter (Baylor University) interviews authors Neil McMillan and Dr. Jackie Limberg (both at University of Missouri), along with expert Dr. Manda Keller-Ross (University of Minnesota), about the new Short Report by McMillan et al. To gain a better understanding of the central sympathoexcitatory effects of insulin in humans, the authors recruited two groups of young, healthy individuals. One group served as a time control and the other group received intranasal...

Sometimes experimental results are serendipitous. Listen as Associate Editor Dr. Crystal Ripplinger (University of California, Davis) talks with authors Dr. Nikki Posnack and Devon Guerrelli (both at Children’s National Hospital and The George Washington University School of Engineering and Applied Science), along with expert Dr. Silvia Marchiano (University of Washington), about the new research by Guerrelli et al. published in our Call for Papers on Excitation-Contraction Coupling, Electrophysiology, and Arrhythmias. The Posnack Lab typically investigates environmental chemicals and their impact on cardiac function using microelectrode arrays to record electrical signals from human iPS cells. When performing cardiotoxicity experiments, th...

Hormone modulation therapy is a growing area of research in cardiovascular science related to a number of factors, such as menopause and andropause, cancers in hormone-producing organs, as well as gender-affirming hormone therapy. So how do scientists and clinicians measure, monitor, and balance applications of hormone therapy? In our latest podcast, Associate Dr. Keith Brunt interviews authors Dr. Chantal Rytz (University of Calgary) and Dr. Sofia Ahmed (University of Alberta), along with expert Dr. Nina Stachenfeld (John B. Pierce Laboratory/Yale School of Medicine) about the recent article by Rytz et al. The authors review the use of estrogen...

While decreased IL-33 signaling has been associated with preeclampsia, the mechanisms linking this signaling pathway to disease pathophysiology are not well understood. In this episode, Associate Editor Dr. Amanda LeBlanc (University of Louisville) interviews author Dr. Denise Cornelius (University of Mississippi Medical Center) and expert Dr. Stella Goulopoulou (Loma Linda University) about the new research study by Wang et al. Using the Reduced Uterine Perfusion Pressure (RUPP) rat model, the authors found evidence that mechanistically links reduced IL-33 with the inflammatory response and vascular dysfunction present in preeclampsia. Is the IL-33 signaling pathway a possible clinical therapeutic target for...

In this episode, Associate Editor Dr. Jonathan Kirk (Loyola University Chicago) interviews author Dr. Ed Lesnefsky (Richmond Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Virginia Commonwealth University) and expert Dr. Chi Fung Lee (Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation) about the new Methods and Resources article by Chen et al. published in our Call for Papers on Impact of Aging on the Cardiovascular System. Lesnefsky and coauthors advanced a technique of isolating mitochondria with an emphasis on integrity of the mitochondrial organelles, their function, purity and characterization in order to develop benchmarks in the field for quality control to support collaboration...

In our latest episode, Consulting Editor Dr. Kristine DeLeon-Pennell (Medical University of South Carolina) interviews fellow co-authors Dr. Charlotte Usselman (McGill University), Dr. Judy Regensteiner (University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus), Dr. Kerrie Moreau (University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus), Dr. Austin Robinson (Indiana University Bloomington), Dr. Jesse Moreira-Bouchard (Boston University), and Dr. Quin Denfeld (Oregon Health and Science University) about their recently published guidelines on the use of sex and gender in cardiovascular research. Until recently, the effects of sex and gender in cardiovascular research have been largely ignored in research design and reporting. The result is that...

After a yearlong hiatus, Behind the Bench is back, listeners! In this episode, we welcome back our B2B co-hosts Dr. Charlotte Usselman and Dr. Tommy Martin, who get the story behind the story from the one and only Dr. DeWayne Townsend, corresponding author of the recently published study by Stevens et al. Trust me, you are going to love listening to DeWayne talk about science! As DeWayne rightly points out, if we want to understand a disease before it's a disease, we have to model it in order to figure it out. From the “dastardly Krebs cycle” to grin...