Evren Azeloglu, Ph.D.

Lay Summary of the Project:

Hypertension is one of the major drivers of kidney disease. However, the physical mechanisms through which high blood pressure affects nephrotic syndrome are not well known. Dr. Azeloglu plans to utilize engineering methods to investigate the structural properties of the cells of the kidney glomeruli during healthy and diseased conditions.  This project will be conducted in hypertensive animal models with a nanotechnology platform.  He will explore how kidney cells retain their structural integrity against mechanical injury (i.e. due to high blood pressure) and identify potential genes that may be responsible for maintenance of the healthy cellular structure under hypertension. This project aims to use state-of-the-art bioinformatics and nanotechnology tools to link the structural integrity of glomerular cells to overall kidney function.  The results of this research may directly translate into treatable drug targets that can improve the resilience of kidney cells against high blood pressure, and slow down the progression of chronic kidney disease.