- Principal Investigators
- All Researchers
- Affiliate Members
- Fellows
Penn-affiliated collaborators participating in the research and educational programs of Penn Cardiovascular Institute are eligible for affiliate membership.
Affiliate members are non-faculty basic scientists, translational researchers, clinical investigators, medical students, graduate students, house staff, post-doctoral fellows and others who are participating in cardiovascular research and educational programs of the Penn CVI.
Learn more about the benefits of and how to join Penn Cardiovascular Institute
Brian BetenskyPenn Resident
Email: brian.betensky@uphs.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Myocyte Biology / Heart Failure
Cardiac Electrophysiology / Channel Biology
Research Description: As an intern, my interests in cardiology remain broad. What interests me most at this point in my training are arrhythmias, heart failure and cardiomyopathies. I am particularly fascinated by electrophysiology and hope to join a project either later in my intern year or as a JAR.
Of note, during medical school I was involved in both clinical and basic research including:
- A study on the use of cardiac MRI in examining myocardial adiposity.
- Molecular studies of signaling mechanisms of myocardial hypertrophy and angiogenesis.
Jeffrey Billheimer, Ph.D.Senior Research Investigator (ITMAT)
Email: billheij@mail.med.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description: I have worked for several years in the area of lipid metabolism especially with regard to disease processes such as atherosclerosis and obesity. Presently I am working on proteins that effect "reverse cholesterol transport" and those that affect the hepatic secretion of VLDL-TG.
Andrew Edmondson, Graduate StudentPerelman School of Medicine
Email: andrewe@mail.med.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description: I am an MD/PhD in Dr. Daniel Rader's Laboratory.
Robert FenningPenn Cardiovascular Fellow
Email: Robert.Fenning@uphs.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description: I am interested in vascular biology, including the treatment of coronary and peripheral atherosclerosis.
Working in the laboratory of Dr. Robert Wilensky, I participated in the investigation of a novel therapy called darapladib, a lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (LpPLA2) inhibitor. In a diabetic/hypercholesterolemic porcine model of atherosclerosis, we found that inhibition of LpPLA2 reduces complex coronary atherosclerotic plaque development. I am currently studying the role of LpPLA2 on the development of vulnerable plaque in porcine abdominal aortas.
Desiree Fleck, RN, MSN, CRNP, CCRN, PhD
Email: fleckd@email.chop.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Cardiovascular Development / Congenital Heart Disease
Research Description: I am interested in adults with congenital heart disease. Specifically, in the area of transition in adolescents and young adults with congenital heart disease.
Marie Guerraty, MD/PhD
Email: marie.guerraty@uphs.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit:
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description: Aortic valve sclerosis, endothelium.
Michael Kaufmann, MDResident, Department of Medicine
Email: michael.kaufmann@uphs.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Biotechnology / Nanomedicine / Imaging, Pulmonary
Research Description: My current work involves using MESA cohort data to evaluate whether right ventricular structure and function measures on cardiac MRI predict the subsequent onset of dyspnea.
Sumeet A. KhetarpalUndergraduate, Major in Biochemistry, Biophysics, M.S. in Chemistry candidate
Email: sumeetak@sas.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description: I work with Andrew Edmondson, an MD/PhD graduate student, on the genetics of HDL levels in humans in Dr. Daniel Rader's Laboratory.
Daniel Larach, MD/MTR Student Perelman School of Medicine
Email: dlarach@mail.med.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description: I work in Dr. Daniel Rader's laboratory on projects examining the genetics of HDL cholesterol in humans through genotyping and phenotyping of subjects with very high and very low HDL cholesterol levels.
Christopher S. Lee, RN, MSN, CCRN, PhD Student
Email: lee5@nursing.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Myocyte Biology / Heart Failure
Research Description: Human subject research involving patients with heart failure.
Primary interests: Neuroendocrine and hemodynamic variability in response to physiological challenges, and the use of impedence cardiography. Secondary interest: Influence of patient self-care behavior on physiological outcomes.
Joshua Liez, MD
Email: joshua.liez@uphs.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description: I am a second-year internal medicine resident ultimately going into preventive cardiology. My research and academic interest is lipid lowering and cardiovascular risk stratification and reduction. I've worked with Daniel Rader and Richard Dunbar on research on HDL-raising medications and on novel cardiovascular risk markers, and I continue to be actively involved with their research.
Scott M. Lilly, MDPenn Cardiovascular Fellow
Email: Scott.Lilly@uphs.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description: Dr. Lilly is interested in the mechanisms of coronary and peripheral atherosclerosis. He also has a clinical and academic interest in structural heart interventions.
Sean MaloneySEAS Graduate Student
Email: seanfm@seas.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit:
Thrombosis / Hemostasis
Research Description: Microfluidic-based models of thrombosis and hemostasis incorporating patterned collagen, von Willebrand Factor, and tissue factor.
Mitchell McBride, CCRPData Management, Cardiology, Heart Failure/Transplant
Email: mitchell.mcbride@uphs.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Cardiovascular Development / Congenital Heart Disease, Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description: Heart failure, cardiovascular and diabetes disease management. Device studies, including telemedicine/telehealth. Access database design, reports and data management. Research monitor for multi-site trials. Focus has been with primary care, internal medicine, urban and rural sites.
Jeffrey Ogbara, MDPenn Resident, Dept. of Medicine, Internal Medicine
Email: jeffrey.ogbara@uphs.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention, Biotechnology / Nanomedicine / Imaging
Research Description:
Acute Coronary Syndromes
Cardiac Catheterization and associated devices (Stents, ICE, IVUS)
Cardiac MRI and atherosclerosis
Freda Patterson, PhDProject Administrator, Epidemiology Division
Email: fredap@upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description:
Dr. Patterson’s research focuses on the family unit as a mode of behavior change. In previous work she has examined smoking cessation indicies among family members of individuals with a history of cancer. Future work will examine primary prevention strategies for cardiovascular health among populations with a family history of cancer (particularly breast and colorectal).
Collin F. Payne
Email: collinp@sas.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention
Research Description:
I am a PhD student in Penn’s Graduate Group in Demography, and work primarily with Julio Chirinos. My research interests are in the stratification of cardiovascular risk in populations, and the creation, application, and improvement of both clinical and population-wide measures of cardiovascular risk.
Kathleen Joy Propert
Email: propert@mail.med.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Lipid / Atherosclerosis / CAD / ACS / Prevention Pulmonary
Research Description:
Dr. Propert is Professor of Biostatistics in the Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology and Director of the Biostatistics Core for the Institute for Translational Research and Therapeutics (ITMAT). She collaborates with multiple investigators in CVI for both T1 Translational Research and randomized clinical trials in the areas of lipid metabolism, cardiovascular risks of NSAID use, modeling of right ventricular function, and treatments for pulmonary hypertension.
Timothy Stalker, Senior Research InvestigatorDept. of Medicine, Hematology-Oncology
Email: tstalker@mail.med.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Thrombosis / Hemostasis
Research Description:
Mechanisms regulating thrombus formation in vivo.
Anjali Vaidya, MD Penn Heart Failure and Transplant Fellow
Pulmonary Hypertension Fellow
Email: anjali.vaidya@uphs.upenn.edu
CVI Program Unit(s):
Heart Failure, Pulmonary Hypertension, Transplant, Echocardiography, Palliative Care
Research Description:I am interested in pulmonary hypertension, transplant, and echocardiography research