Panagiotis Mistriotis, postdoctoral fellow at INBT and the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, is a recipient of a two-year, American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowship. Mistriotis works in Konstantinos Konstantopoulos’ lab and the award will allow him to study how compressive forces affect cell migration.

In the body, cells that make up blood vessel walls, also called vascular cells, are compressed because of the heart’s pulsating forces. Our understanding of vascular cell migration is limited because most experiments are performed outside of the body where cells are free to move in all directions without restriction. By using state-of-the-art bioengineering, imaging, and molecular biology techniques, Mistriotis aims to understand how vascular cells move in response to compression.

Vascular diseases are among the leading causes of death worldwide. This knowledge will allow researchers to develop strategies to control vascular cell movement, and thereby interfere with the progression of vascular diseases.

“I am extremely grateful to the American Heart Association for honoring me with this prestigious award and I am determined to use my study on the mechanobiology of vascular cells as a stepping-stone to advancing the cardiovascular field,’’ said Mistriotis.