Anand, Inder S., MN, D.Phil. (Oxon.)

CARDIOLOGY

Work on different aspects of clinical and experimental heart failure continues in Dr. Anand’s lab. The basic science laboratory continues with the three sections: • The small animal lab is equipped to perform in-vivo hemodynamic and isolated heart function studies in rats and mice. The main focus of the lab is to study ventricular remodeling in the infarct model at the whole organ, cellular and sub-cellular level. • In the myocyte function laboratory contractile function and intracellular calcium kinetics are studied in enzymatically isolated mammalian myocytes. • In the molecular and cellular biology laboratory studies are carried out to investigate the molecular biology of myocardial infarction with special reference to ventricular remodeling. Areas of study include myocyte hypertrophy, apoptosis, adrenergic receptor modifications, and the cardiac interstitium. The heart failure clinic that is run by a nurse Practitioner and a nurse had a very successful year in preventing patients from being readmitted with heart failure. Currently, the following clinical trials in heart failure are under progress: VALIANT, A-HeFT, REVERT, ACORN, REVIVE, ONTARGET/TRANSCEND, I-PRESERVE, AND AMGEN sponsored study of treating anemic heart failure patients with EPO. The VA & NIH sponsored WATCH Trial, and industry sponsored CHARM, AQUAVIT, and EPHESUS trials have ended, and the results are awaited.