UW Bioengineering professors Dr. Michael Regnier and Dr. Chuck Murry (joint professor in Pathology and Cardiology) are exploring the potential of gene therapy to increase heart muscle function. The team used genetic engineering techniques to create a strain of mice whose cells produced elevated levels of an enzyme called ribonucleotide UW Bioengineering professor Dr. Chuck Murryreductase, which in turn, increased concentration of dATP, a molecule which improves heart muscle performance. This discovery could potentially lead to more effective treatment for a variety of heart failure conditions.

Dr. Michael Regnier’s research was published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.