Dr. James B. Bassingthwaighte Endowed Faculty Fellow in Bioengineering
Professor of Bioengineering
Director, Center for Translational Muscle Research
Associate Chair of Research and Translation
mregnier@uw.edu
Phone: (206) 616-4325
Office: Foege N310F
South Lake Union
Phone: (206) 221-0504
Office: South Research Building, S184
michael_regnier_candid

Michael Regnier

Lab Website

How I am inventing the future of medicine

My laboratory studies the molecular mechanisms of cardiac and skeletal muscle disease and uses this information to develop novel gene therapies and proteins, cells and tissue engineering approaches for treatment of disease

Multi-scale muscle biomechanics
Myofilament targeted gene therapy
Stem cell derived cardiomyocytes
Multi-scale modeling of muscle

The goal of the HAMM lab’s research is to understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms that regulate muscle contraction and its dysfunction with disease. We use a variety of molecular biology, genetic, and biomechanical, and computational modeling approaches. The knowledge gained from these experiments is used to design gene therapies and cell/tissue replacement approach to improve the performance of diseased cardiac and skeletal muscle. Many research projects are done in collaboration with other laboratories at the University of Washington, at other institutions across the US, and in Europe.

Ph.D., Biology-Neurobiology, University of Southern California, 1991
M.S., Exercise Science, Portland State University, 1983
B.A., History, B.A. Political Science, C.S., Central European Politics, Portland State University, 1980

1992-1995 Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, Department of Physiology, UCLA School of Medicine
1991-1992 Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, Department of Anesthesiology Research, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Mn

2014 University of Washington Presidential Entrepreneurial Faculty Fellow, 2014
2013 – current Washington Research Foundation Endowed Professor of Bioengineering
2008 University of Washington Distinguished Faculty Mentor Award – Nominee
2005 University of Washington Student Mentor Award, SURP
2001-2004 American Heart Association – Established Investigator Award

BIOEN 345: Failure Analysis of Physiologic Systems
BIOEN 531: Proposal Writing
BiOEN 498/599: Cardiac Bioengineering

Robeson KZ, Childers MC, Fruebis KJ, Soriano R, Davis J, Regnier M. Conformational state of myosin’s disordered loop 2 structure mediates actomyosin association during crossbidge formation. Protein Science. 2026 Feb;35(2):e70437. Doi: 10.1002/pro.70437. PMID: 41556450.

Mohran S, Kooiker KB, Naim A, Pilagov M, Asencio A, Turner KL, Ma W, Flint G, Jiang S, Zhao J, McMillen TS, Mandrycky C, Mahoney-Schaefer M, Irving TC, Tanner BCW, Kad NM, Regnier M, Moussavi-Harami F. Myosin modulator Aficamten inhibits force in cardiac muscle by altering myosin’s biochemical activity without changing thick filament structure. JACC Basic Transl Sci. 2025 Dec 19;11(1):101449. doi: 10.1016/j.jacbts.2025.101449. Online ahead of print. PMID: 41421020.

Steczina S, Mohran S, Childers MC, McMillen TS, Naim A, Pilagov M, Dente M, Kooiker KB, Mandrycky C, Tawde K, Hesson J, Zhao J, Mathieu J, Pioner JM, Geeves MA, Ma W, Moussavi-Harami F, Kad NM, Regnier M. Molecular mechanisms of altered contraction with the ?-myosin R403Q mutation in porcine ventricular muscle and a human stem cell-derived cardiomyocyte model. J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2025 Dec;209:143-160. doi: 10.1016/j.yjmcc.2025.10.008. Epub 2025 Oct 28. PMID: 411673295.

Nandwani N, Bhowmik D, Childers MC, Goluguri RR, Dawood A, Regnier M, Spudich JA, Ruppel KM. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy mutations Y115H and E497D disrupt the folded-back state of human ?-cardiac myosin allosterically. Nat Commun. 2025 Oct 1;16(1):8751. doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-63816-1. PMID: 41034214

Tasfaout H, McMillen TS, Reyes TR, Halbert CL, Tian R, Regnier M, and Chamberlain JS. Expression of full-length dystrophin reverses muscular dystrophy defects in young and old mdx4cv mice. J Clin Invest. 2025 Jun 10;135(15):e189075. doi: 10.1172/JCI189075. eCollection 2025 Aug 1. PMID: 40493400.

Bretherton RC, Reichardt IM, Zabrecky KA, Nagle A, Bailey LRJ, Bugg D, Smolgovsky S, Gifford AL, McMillen TS, Goldstein AJ, Kooiker KB, Flint GV, Martinson A, Gunaje J, Koser F, Plaster E, Linke WA, Regnier M, Moussavi-Harami F, Sniadecki NJ, DeForest CA, Davis J. Preventing hypocontractility-induced fibroblast expansion alleviates dilated cardiomyopathy. Science. 2025 Nov 6;390(6773):eadv9157. doi: 10.1126/science.adv9157. Epub 2025 Nov 6. PMID: 40934290

Nandwani N, Bhowmik D, Childers MC, Goluguri RR, Dawood A, Regnier M, Spudich JA, Ruppel KM. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy mutations Y115H and E497D disrupt the folded-back state of human ?-cardiac myosin allosterically. Nat Commun. 2025 Oct 1;16(1):8751. doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-63816-1. PMID: 41034214

Pilagov M, Steczina S, Naim A, Regnier M, Geeves MA, and Kad N. Spatially resolving how cMyBP-C phosphorylation and haploinsufficiency in porcine and human myofibrils affects ß-cardiac myosin activity. J Gen Physiol, 2025 Sep 1;157(5):e202413628. doi: 10.1085/jgp.202413628. Epub 2025 Jul 7. PMID: 40622308.

Kooiker K, Gan QF, Yu M, Mohran S, Cheng Y, Sa N, Flint G, Gao C, Nissen D, Ma W, McMillen T, Irving TC, Moussavi-Harami F, Regnier M. Mechanisms of a novel regulatory light chain dependent cardiac myosin inhibitor. 2024. J Gen Physiol Oct 7;156(10):e202313503. doi: 10.1085/jgp.202313503. Epub 2024 Jul 31. PMID: 39083045; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC11291911.

Steczina S, Mohran S, Bailey LRJ, McMillen TS, Kooiker KB, Wood NB, Davis J, Previs MJ, Olivotto I, Pioner JM, Geeves MA, Poggesi C, Regnier M. MYBPC3-c.772G>A mutation results in haploinsufficiency and altered myosin cycling kinetics in a patient induced stem cell derived cardiomyocyte model of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2024 Jun;191:27-39. doi: 10.1016/j.yjmcc.2024.04.010. Epub 2024 Apr 20. PMID: 38648963; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC11116032.

Childers MC, Geeves MA, Regnier M. Interacting myosin dynamics and their modification by 2”-deoxy-ADP. Biophys J. Interacting myosin dynamics and their modification by 2”-deoxy-ADP. Biophys J. 2024 doi: 10.1016/j.bpj.2024.10.013. 123:3997-4008. PubMed PMID: 39444161; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC11617627

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