Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The University of Iowa received a $249.0K Project Grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) under the Cardiovascular Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.837), awarded July 10, 2026, with completion scheduled for May 31, 2029. This award funds investigative research into the fate-mapping of cardiac monocyte recruitment and macrophage specification following myocardial injury. The principal investigator will utilize advanced technologies including intravital two-photon imaging and computational biology techniques to identify the spatiotemporal dynamics of monocyte recruitment and determine when recruited monocytes acquire their specific macrophage transcriptional profiles in the cardiac environment.

The grant supports a three-year research initiative focused on understanding the role of interferon signaling in regulating macrophage population diversification and its effects on inflammation and repair processes following cardiac injury. Deliverables include characterization of monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation timing within cardiac tissue, identification of interferon signaling mechanisms controlling macrophage specification, and comprehensive analysis of how recruited immune cell populations contribute to cardiac remodeling and recovery. The research aims to generate foundational knowledge that could inform future therapeutic strategies to prevent or reverse adverse cardiac remodeling in myocardial infarction patients, addressing a significant unmet clinical need in cardiovascular disease treatment.