The mission of the Cardiovascular Research Institute (CVRI) is to enhance collaborative research that is broadly related to cardiovascular disease and neuroscience. Our major goals are to promote scientific exchange among clinicians and basic scientists and to provide resources to support new CV research in the Health Science Campus (HSC). The Cardiovascular Research Institute includes over 50 faculty from basic science and clinical departments. We invite all Loyola scientists and clinicians with relevant interests to participate in the CVRI’s activities to enhance discovery and improve patient outcomes.
The CVRI is a publicly and privately funded entity.
Our activities are supported by the National Institutes for Health, the American Heart Association, the National Science Foundation, and the kind support of our generous private donors. For more information, please contact the Department of Advancement.
You can contribute directly in support of the CVRI on the Stritch School of Medicine's dedicated giving page.
The CVRI consists of six research divisions:
Cardiac Physiology and Biophysics Division
Understanding the physiology and mechanics of cardiac function is crucial to improving the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease. Our research ranges from understanding basic events of cardiac and skeletal muscle function to uncovering the detailed mechanisms of heart remodeling during chronic disease states. Our primary areas of study, in order of priority, are:
- Myofilament regulation during disease
- Defining the mechanisms that control calcium homeostasis and excitation-contraction coupling in the heart.
- The interaction of membrane proteins such as SERCA with their regulatory partners
- The role of the calcineurin-NFATc signaling pathway and inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor-mediated calcium release in cardiac remodeling during hypertrophy and heart failure
- The protective role of heat shock protein
For more information, click here.
Vascular Biology and Hemostasis Division
For over 40 years, Loyola faculty in this division have participated in translational research to understand the disease process and develop innovative diagnostic methods, devices, and drugs. We seek to promote collaborative research opportunities to extend our research programs at national and international levels. Our multi-discipline team focuses on the pathophysiological mechanisms of vascular disorders and their management via several lines of research:
- Venous thromboembolism
- Acute coronary syndrome
- Atrial fibrillation
- Thrombotic and ischemic stroke
- Vascular manifestations of venous disorders and sepsis associated vascular disorders
- Cancer associated thrombosis and bleeding
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Auto immune disease related vascular pathogenesis
Clinical and Translational Research Division
Public Health Division
Neuroscience Division
- Neuroendocrinology
- Alcohol and drug abuse
- Cardiovascular function and serotonin
- Neural control of metabolic homeostasis
- Traumatic brain injury
- Stroke and neural plasticity
- Parkinson Disease and neurodegeneration
- Neuroimmunology
- Neuronal excitability
For more information, click here.