Uncommon approaches to a common enemy. - VCU Pauley Heart ...

The Beat is published byVCU Pauley Heart Centeron the MCV Campus ofVirginia Commonwealth UniversityP O Box 980036Richmond, Virginia, 23298-0036804-628-1215Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.VCU Pauley Heart Center1200 E. Broad StreetP O Box 980036Richmond, Virginia 23298-0036Return Service RequestedFirst Class MailU.S. PostagePAIDPermit No. 869Richmond,VAFall 2009Vol. 3 No. 2Editor: Penelope H. Stygarpstygar@stygargroup.comDesign: Stygar Group, Inc.Comments, submissionsand suggestions are welcome.Please email to the editoror to Cindy Dutilly,Administrative Assistant toDr. George W. Vetroveccdutilly@mcvh-vcu.edu.A Publication of the VCU Pauley Heart Center on Virginia Commonwealth University’s Medical College of Virginia CampusThere was so much to cover in this issue of The Beat that I have beengiven the welcome responsibility of highlighting Pauley HeartCenter’s recent major accomplishments in this column.I will begin with the announcement that Dr. Rakesh Kukrejawas just recognized with Virginia Commonwealth University’s highesthonor for faculty scholarship—the University DistinguishedScholarship Award. With about 2,000 full time instructional facultymembers at our university, many of who are deeply involved inscholarly pursuits, you can see that this is a very high honor indeed.Rakesh is a stellar example of why Pauley Heart Center continuesto grow in national and international stature and why our programsare receiving well-deserved recognition and top accreditations.Because at the end of the day, our heart center is measured by the quality of its programs, and highcaliber programs are the direct result of high quality people.Our fellowship program is another case in point. As you read about this year’s cardiology,interventional and electrophysiology fellows, I think you will agree, we are attracting the best of thebest. These talented young people will lead the charge on cardiac disease in the future, and it is reassuringto know that they will have the training to be very good at it.Our heart transplant program has achieved tremendous growth and excellent outcomes underthe exceptional leadership of Dr. Vigneshwar Kasirajan. In 2008, the transplant teams performed atotal of 21 heart transplants at VCU and McGuire VA Medical Center, making it the largest transplantprogram by volume in Virginia. Vig and his team also implanted 12 mechanical circulatoryassist devices, including seven total artificial hearts in 2008, and are on track to significantly increasethese numbers in 2009.Ventricular assist devices, or VADs, are among the mechanical circulatory assist devices mentionedabove. We have a long and distinguished history in the care of patients requiring VADs, andthis year, after a comprehensive, independent and very rigorous evaluation of our VAD program, wewere given the Gold Seal of Approval TM from the Joint Commission.We also received Chest Pain Accreditation from the Society of Chest Pain Centers. Thisaccreditation, which is in effect for three years, demonstrates that our medical center has integratedthe best practices and newest paradigms for treating patients in our cardiac care services. It also affirmsour outstanding, publicly reported data demonstrating excellent compliance with national guidelinesfor optimal management of myocardial infarction.As I tally up these recent accomplishments and then add in the prodigiousnumber and exceptional quality of scholarly publications and presentationsby our faculty, this year’s foremost achievement becomes even moremeaningful. In July, the U.S. News Group ranked MCV Hospitals among the50 best hospitals in the nation in the specialties of heart and heart surgery, inits “America’s Top Hospitals” report.Credit, and a large dose of gratitude, for all of these successes goes toPauley Heart Center’s entire faculty and staff. I cannot imagine a more talented, dedicated, hardworkinggroup of healthcare professionals. Credit also goes to our many loyal friends, whose encouragementand support have strengthened every aspect of our heart center.Thank you all,George W. Vetrovec, mdUncommon approaches to a common enemy.The incidence of heart disease in the United States is growing at an alarmingpace, fueled by an obesity epidemic, sedentary lifestyles, and an aging population.According to the American Heart Association, an estimated 80 millionAmerican adults—that is one in every three—have one or more types ofcardiovascular disease (CVD). Almost 1 million will die from CVD this year.continue on page 2

Rakesh Kukreja, PhD, Jeanette and Eric Lipman Distinguished Professor in Cardiology Anindita Das, PhD, Assistant Professor Lei Xi, MD, Assistant Professor Fadi N. Salloum, PhD, Assistant ProfessorNew knowledge starts here.A foe so formidable as CVD has to be attacked on many fronts, which is exactly what thephysicians and scientists at Pauley Heart Center are doing. In basic science labs and clinicallabs, across subspecialties and disciplines, our research teams are working to discover newknowledge that will prevent CVD and improve care for CVD patients.In this issue of The Beat, we are focusing on the research efforts of Dr. Rakesh Kukrejaand his colleagues as they probe novel strategies for protecting the heart from injury associatedwith cardiac ischemia.“The major cause ofcardiovascular disease involvesischemia, which is basicallythe inefficient delivery ofoxygen to the cells of theheart, mainly the heart musclecells or cardiomyocytes,”Kukreja said. “These cells,after a period of stress, begindying and the efficiencyof the heart’s pumping actiondeclines. Additional damagecan occur with reperfusion,which is when bloodsupply returns to the tissueafter a period of ischemia, forinstance, after a heart attack.”“Our lab is studying pharmacologicaland physiologicaltools that precondition theheart, making it more resistantto ischemic attacks, and thereforereducing or eliminatingthe damage from heart attack.”The value of Kukreja’sresearch is evidenced in hisfunding history, as well as inhis designation as a NationalInstitutes of Health MERITinvestigator, which is an awardgiven to outstanding scientistswho are conducting researchof importance to NIH. Hehas been continuously fundedsince 1989 by NIH andcurrently has funding inexcess of $6 million for hisresearch projects.Kukreja’s research qualityand productivity was instrumentalin VCU recently beingawarded a $5 million grantfrom the NIH NationalCenter for Research Resourcesfor renovation of a state-ofthe-artcardiovascular researchcenter. The new facility willprovide necessary infrastructureto support greater depthand breath of cardiovascularinjury and repair research.Kukreja’s first majorbreakthrough came in 2002,when he and his colleaguesdiscovered that the most popularerectile dysfunction (ED)drug, sildenafil (Viagra)induced a powerful protectiveeffect against myocardialdamage after experimentalheart attack in animal models.Based on those extraordinaryresults, his lab has continuedto expand the conceptof cardioprotection withED drugs, including tadalafil(Cialis) and vardenafil(Levitra) in ischemia/reperfusion injury, heartfailure and cardiomyopathycaused by myocardial infarction.The lab has continuedto generate important newdiscoveries, including thefollowing:. Demonstrated, for thefirst time, that sildenafil(Viagra) directly protects adultcardiomyoctyes against necrosisand apoptosis followingischemia-reoxygenation injury.Sildenafil caused significantpreservation of mitochondrialmembrane potential thatis essential for production ofATP and cellular homeostasis.These results suggest thatvasodilatation caused bysildenafil or the presence ofother cell types may notbe a prerequisite for the potentprotective effect of this drug.Sildenafil also induced earlyup-regulation of Bcl-2/Baxratio, which may have playedan important role in theantiapoptotic effect of thedrug in the heart.. Expanded the concept ofcardioprotection with PDE-5inhibitors by further showingattenuation in dilatedcardiomyopathy caused bydoxorubicin (DOX) or heartfailure caused by permanentocclusion of coronary artery(myocardial infarction). Furthershowed that Viagra preventeddeath of heart cells, improvedsurvival of mitochondria,preserved myofibrillar integrity,prevented heart dysfunctionand EKG abnormalities thatare consistent with thechronic toxicity associatedwith DOX.. Elucidated the in-depth roleof critical MAP kinase signalingpathway in activation ofnitric oxide synthesis pathwaysand protein kinase G (PKG)-dependent glycogen synthasekinase -3ß inactivation in sildenafil-inducedcardioprotection.. Demonstratied that tadalafil(Cialis) causes PKG-dependentgeneration of hydrogen sulfide(H2S), a new gaseous moleculewhich plays a critical rolein protection against ischemia/reperfusion injury. They areexpanding the investigationto study the role of H2Sin attenuation of doxorubicininducedcardiomyopathy.. For the first time, reportedthe role of microRNAs(miRNAs) in cardioprotection,MicroRNAs are noncodingRNAs of 18 to 24 nucleotidesthat are involved in posttranscriptionalregulation of proteinexpression. They showed thatischemic preconditioning of theheart synthesizes miRNAsthat reduce injury in the heartfollowing ischemia/reperfusioninjury through upregulatingcardioprotective proteinsincluding endothelial nitricoxide synthase, heat shockprotein 70 and its transcriptionfactor HSF-1.“Our successes andproductivity are due in nosmall part to our talentedfaculty investigators, as wellas the post-doctoral fellows,clinical cardiology fellows,physician scientist-trackresidents, and undergraduatesthat rotate through our lab,”said Kukreja. “There arealso tremendous advantagesto being part of a largemultidisciplinary academicmedical center, where thecross-fertilization of ideasis encouraged and discoveriesare translated faster into theclinical environment wherepatients can benefit.”Ben Woolbright, PhD Student David Durrant, Lab SpecialistRamzi Ockaili, PhD, Research AssociateSai Sudha Koka, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow Shu-Guang Zhu, MD, PhD, Postdoctorial Fellow

2009 Pauley Heart Center FellowsThe 2009 class of cardiovascular diseases, interventional and electrophysiologyfellows is full of familiar faces, with all but one having prior education, trainingor hospitalist service at Pauley Heart Center. This speaks volumes about thequality of students and trainees VCU Medical School and Medical Center attracts,as there are hundreds of applicants for each of our fellowship program positions.On completion of their training, these fellows will join the more than 200 ofour program alumni who are practicing in 32 states and several foreign countries.Anit Mankad, MD (Cardiovascular Disease)Darryn Appleton, MD,distinguished himselfthroughout his residencyhere, earning several awardsincluding OutstandingJunior Resident and Housestaff Diagnostician in 2007,and serving as chief residentin 2008. His work withour faculty has resulted innumerous publicationsand presentations, includingarticles in American HeartJournal and American Journalof Cardiology and an oralpresentation at the 2007Darryn Appleton, MD (Cardiovascular Disease)ACC meeting.Darryn was born in Auckland, New Zealand and received hismedical education at the University of Auckland. Following graduation,he did house staff training in New Zealand and the United Kingdom,as well as laboratory training in Germany. His international backgroundis reflected in his hobbies and interests, which include sailing, travel,hiking and German language and culture.A native of Manhasset,New York, AndrewBinder, MD, is followingin his father’s footstepsin his choice of a careerin cardiology. Andrewreceived is undergraduatedegree in Biology fromBinghamton Universityand his MD from DrexelCollege of Medicine(Hahnemann) inPhiladelphia.Binder has beeninvolved in volunteeractivities throughout hisundergraduate andpost-graduate education,including service asa clinical assistant toAndrew Binder, MD (Cardiovascular Disease)the Salvation Army andto an outreach program for migrant farm workers, and as a peer advisorto freshman medical students. He also served on the VCU InternalMedicine’s Resident Life Committee, initiating and organizing socialevents for IM housestaff.While an intern and resident at Pauley Heart Center, Bindergave six presentations on a variety of subjects to Department of InternalMedicine faculty and housestaff. He also participated in a researchproject under the supervision of Dr. Antonio Abbate examining theutility of BNP measurements in patients with decompensated heartfailure. The work was accepted for presentation as a poster at the2008 ACC meeting.Anit Mankad, MD, hails from New Jersey, where he graduated summacum laude with a degree in Biology from Rutgers and earned his MDfrom the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey/RobertWood Johnson Medical School.During his internal medicine residency here, Mankad spentresearch time with Dr. Antonio Abbate that resulted in the submissionof a poster presentation featuring the case of a young adult with cardiacpheochromocytoma. In the year between his residency and fellowship,he worked as a hospitalist at Henrico Doctors Hospital.Mankad’s interests include playing basketball 2-3 times a week,weight training and cheering on the Philadelphia Eagles.Pritam Polkampally, MD,received his medical degreefrom India’s premier medicalschool, the Armed ForcesMedical College in Pune,India. Following graduation,he completed a year ofinternship before immigratingto the U.S. for internalmedicine training at WrightState University BoonshoftSchool of Medicine.While a house officerat Wright State, Polkampallywas elected to Alpha OmegaAlpha Honorary Society.He also served as a chiefresident during his thirdPritam Polkampally, MD (Cardiovascular Disease)year and received theOutstanding Senior Resident of the Year award.Following the completion of his internal medicine residency,Polkampally worked on the hospitalist service at McGuire V. A. MedicalCenter in 2007-08. He collaborated extensively with Dr. On Topazand as a result now has eight manuscripts and three book chaptersin preparation, in press or published. In addition, he is co-investigatoron two institutional research projects currently underway at the V. A.In the year prior to starting his cardiology training here,Polkampally was an Intramural Research Training Award Fellowin Cardiovascular Imaging at the National Institutes of Health inBethesda, Maryland.Syed Raza, MD, was born in Karachi, Pakistanand received his medical degree from Dow MedicalCollege in the same city. He immigrated to theU.S. in 2003 to continue his education, completinghis internal medicine residency at Michigan StateUniversity in 2006.During his residency, Raza served on theCode Blue Committee and was elected by his peersto serve as their representative on the GraduateMedical Education Committee. He also preparedand presented three posters at the regional AmericanCollege of Physicians meetings.Raza served as a hospitalist on Main 10Cardiology for two years before beginning his cardiology fellowship training.Syed’s hobbies include travel, photography, and playing cricketand squash.Syed Raza, MD (Cardiovascular Disease)Hong Jeong, MD, has beenat VCU since 2002 whenhe began his internal medicineinternship and residency,which he followed withcardiovascular disease training.He earned his MD at theUniversity of South FloridaCollege of Medicine andhis BS with honors from theUniversity of Florida.Jeong has garnerednumerous awards and honorsduring his education andtraining, including election toPhi Eta Sigma and Phi BetaKappa honor societies, andawards for House Staff MVPHong Jeong, MD (Interventional)and Outstanding Clinician.He has worked on several clinical research projects at Pauley HeartCenter and has been a frequent presenter at Cardiac CatheterizationConferences, with subjects ranging from Transcatheter Closure of AtrialSeptal Defects to Drug Eluting Stent Implantation in ST ElevationMyocardial Infraction.Christopher King, MD, is afamiliar face on both the MCVCampus and at the V. A. as he justcompleted his cardiovascular diseasefellowship and is now training in ourinterventional cardiology program.His research includescollaborating with Dr. Mary AnnPeberdy and other National Registryof Cardio Pulmonary Resusitationinvestigators to analyze CPRstatistics in an effort to improvecurrent guidelines and outcomes.King is a cum laude graduateof Samford University inBirmingham, Alabama, where hereceived his BS in Biology witha minor in Chemistry. He continuedChristopher King, MD (Interventional)his education in Birmingham,earning his MD from The University of Alabama School of Medicineand doing his residency at University of Alabama Hospitals.King is a member of the ACC, SCAI, the AMA, the ACP andis currently serving on the AHA Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosisand Vascular Biology and AHA Interdisciplinary Working Group onAtherosclerotic Peripheral Vascular DiseaseOyidie Igbokidi, MD, is thisyear’s sole fellow withoutprevious VCU education background,as she comes to ourinterventional cardiologyfellowship program from theUniversity of Iowa Hospitalsand Clinics where shecompleted her cardiovasculardisease training in 2006.In the years between hercardiology training and interventionaltraining she practicedwith Lewis-Gale Physiciansin Salem,Virginia.Igbokidi did herOyidie Igbokidi, MD (Interventional)internal medicine residencyat West Suburban Hospital in Oak Park, IL. She received her MBBS, theequivalent of an MD degree, from the University of Jos Medical Schoolin Nigeria.Igbokidi is board certified in internal medicine, cardiovasculardisease and is board eligible in nuclear cardiology.Daniel Alexander, DO, receivedhis undergraduate education at VPI,graduating with a BA in philosophyand a BS in biology. He earned hisDO from Kirksville College ofOsteopathic Medicine in Missouriand followed with a transitionalinternship at the National NavalMedical Center in Portsmouth,Virginia.Alexander served with theU. S. Marine Corps from June2001 – June 2003. As a BattalionSurgeon he was responsible for thehealth care of hundreds of marinesand sailors, including coordinationof medical assets and involvementin day-to-day combat operationsin support of Operation IraqiFreedom. He was awarded theDaniel Alexander, DO (Electrophysiology)Combat Action Ribbon, the GlobalWar on Terrorism Expedition Medal, and The Presidential Unit Citationin support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, December 2002-June 2003.On completion of his military service, Alexander did his internalmedicine residency at William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak Michiganand then came to VCU for his cardiovascular diseases fellowshiptraining. He began electrophysiology training this past July.Alexander’s current research is involved with examining thepotential mechanisms for recurrence of arrhythmias after ablation usingcryothermal methods. The principal investigator on the study isDr. Mark Wood.Alexander’s wife, Sherrie, works as an acute care nurse practitionerat Pauley Heart Center.

PublicationsVCU Pauley Heart Center physicians, scientists and nurses authored or co-authored more than60 articles or abstracts that were published in national journals from January to September 2009.VCU faculty, fellows, staff and students are in red.Kowalski M, Wood MA, Ellenbogen KA.Supraventricular tachycardia versus ventricular tachycardia detection:is the device right?Heart Rhythm. 2009 Jan;6(1):135-7.Diercks DB, Kontos MC, Chen AY, Pollack CV Jr, Wiviott SD, Rumsfeld JS, Magid DJ,Gibler WB, Cannon CP, Peterson ED, Roe MT.Utilization and impact of pre-hospital electrocardiograms for patientswith acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction: data fromthe NCDR (National Cardiovascular Data Registry) ACTION (AcuteCoronary Treatment and Intervention Outcomes Network) Registry.J Am Coll Cardiol. 2009 Jan 13;53(2):161-6.Ornato JP, Kurz MC, Peberdy MA.Controlling reperfusion injury: role of induced hypothermia in postresuscitationcare.JEMS. 2009 Jan;34(1):17-20.Styron JF, Jois-Bilowich P, Starling R, Hobbs RE, Kontos MC, Pang PS, Peacock WF.Initial emergency department systolic blood pressure predicts left ventricularsystolic function in acute decompensated heart failure.Congest Heart Fail. 2009 Jan-Feb;15(1):9-13.Guazzi M, Myers J, Peberdy MA, Bensimhon D, Chase P, Arena R.Heart rate recovery predicts sudden cardiac death in heart failure.Int J Cardiol. 2009 Feb 2.Wegrzyn J, Potla R, Chwae YJ, Sepuri NB, Zhang Q, Koeck T, Derecka M, Szczepanek K,Szelag M, Gornicka A, Moh A, Moghaddas S, Chen Q, Bobbili S, Cichy J, Dulak J,Baker DP, Wolfman A, Stuehr D, Hassan MO, Fu XY, Avadhani N, Drake JI, Fawcett P,Lesnefsky EJ, Larner AC.Function of mitochondrial Stat3 in cellular respiration.Science. 2009 Feb 6;323(5915):793-Biasucci LM, Liuzzo G, Della Bona R, Leo M, Biasillo G, Angiolillo DJ, Abbate A,Rizzello V, Niccoli G, Giubilato S, Crea F.Different apparent prognostic value of hsCRP in type 2 diabetic andnondiabetic patients with acute coronary syndromes.Clin Chem. 2009 Feb;55(2):365-8.Topaz O.Revascularization of the impenetrable CTO--in support of enhancedantegrade approach.Catheter Cardiovasc Interv. 2009 Feb 1;73(2):276-7.Amin MS, Fox AD, Kalahasty G, Shepard RK, Wood MA, Ellenbogen KA.To the Editor.J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2009 Feb 13.Kalahasty G, Ellenbogen K.The role of pacemakers in the management of patients with atrial fibrillation.Cardiol Clin. 2009 Feb;27(1):137-50, ix.Shepard RK, Ellenbogen KA.Leads and longevity: how long will your pacemaker last?Europace. 2009 Feb;11(2):142-3. Epub 2008 Dec 24.Kontos MC, Roberts BD, Tatum JL, Roberts CS, Jesse RL, Ornato JP.Mortality based on the presenting electrocardiogram in patients withmyocardial infarction in the troponin era.Am J Emerg Med. 2009 Feb;27(2):146-52.Topaz O, Polkampally PR, Mohanty PK, Rizk M, Bangs J, Bernardo NL.Excimer laser debulking for percutaneous coronary intervention in leftmain coronary artery disease.Lasers Med Sci. 2009 Feb 24.Han J, He Y, Li Z, Chen J, Gu X, Pei J, Xie J, Kontos MC, Nixon JV.Pseudoaneurysm of the mitral-aortic intervalvular fibrosa in a patient afterradio frequency catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation.J Ultrasound Med. 2009 Feb;28(2):249-51.Guazzi M, Myers J, Peberdy MA, Bensimhon D, Chase P, Arena R.Ventilatory efficiency and dyspnea on exertion improvements arerelated to reduced pulmonary pressure in heart failure patients receivingSildenafil.Int J Cardiol. 2009 Mar 27Ho PM, Maddox TM, Wang L, Fihn SD, Jesse RL, Peterson ED, Rumsfeld JS.Risk of adverse outcomes associated with concomitant use of clopidogreland proton pump inhibitors following acute coronary syndrome.JAMA. 2009 Mar 4;301(9):937-44.Yin C, Salloum FN, Kukreja RC.A novel role of microRNA in late preconditioning: upregulation of endothelialnitric oxide synthase and heat shock protein 70.Circ Res. 2009 Mar 13;104(5):572-5.Salloum FN, Chau V, Varma A, Hoke NN, Toldo S, Biondi-Zoccai GG, Crea F,Vetrovec GW, Abbate A.Anakinra in experimental acute myocardial infarction--does dosage orduration of treatment matter?Cardiovasc Drugs Ther. 2009 Apr;23(2):129-35.Swerdlow CD, Ellenbogen KA.The changing presentation of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator leadfractures.Heart Rhythm. 2009 Apr;6(4):478-9.Sparagna GC, Lesnefsky EJ.Cardiolipin remodeling in the heart.J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2009 Apr;53(4):290-301.Guazzi M, Myers J, Peberdy MA, Bensimhon D, Chase P, Pinkstaff S, Arena R.Related Articles Echocardiography with Tissue Doppler Imaging andcardiopulmonary exercise testing in patients with heart failure: A correlativeand prognostic analysis.Int J Cardiol. 2009 Apr 29.Lipinski MJ, Frias JC, Amirbekian V, Briley-Saebo KC, Mani V, Samber D, Abbate A,Aguinaldo JG, Massey D, Fuster V, Vetrovec GW, Fayad ZA.Macrophage-specific lipid-based nanoparticles improve cardiac magneticresonance detection and characterization of human atherosclerosis.JACC Cardiovasc Imaging. 2009 May;2(5):637-47.Lotrionte M, Castagno D, Agostoni P, Abbate A, Sangiorgi G, Sheiban I, Biondi-Zoccai GG.Long-term effect of chronic oral anticoagulation: focus on coronaryartery disease.Future Cardiol. 2009 May;5(3):259-71.Cowley MJ, Kuritzky L.Developments in antiplatelet therapy for acute coronary syndromes andconsiderations for long-term management.Curr Med Res Opin. 2009 May 6.Arena R, Arrowood JA, Fei DY, Helm S, Kraft KA.Maximal Aerobic Capacity and the Oxygen Uptake Efficiency Slope asPredictors of Large Artery Stiffness in Apparently Healthy Subjects.J Cardiopulm Rehabil Prev. 2009 May 15.Salloum FN, Hoke NN, Seropian IM, Varma A, Ownby ED, Houser JE, Tassell BV,Abbate A.Parecoxib Inhibits Apoptosis in Acute Myocardial Infarction Dueto Permanent Coronary Ligation But Not Due to Ischemia-Reperfusion.J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2009 May 18.Das A, Salloum FN, Xi L, Rao YJ, Kukreja RC.ERK phosphorylation mediates sildenafil-induced myocardial protectionagainst ischemia-reperfusion injury in mice.Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2009 May;296(5):H1236-43.Stewart S, Lesnefsky EJ, Chen Q.Reversible blockade of electron transport with amobarbital at the onsetof reperfusion attenuates cardiac injury.Transl Res. 2009 May;153(5):224-31.Gold MR, Kroll MW, Ellenbogen KA.Defibrillation testing at ICD implantation: are we asking the wrongquestion?Pacing Clin Electrophysiol. 2009 May;32(5):567-9.Vetrovec GW.Takotsubo syndrome: an opportunity to better understand post-infarctionmyocardial recovery?J Invasive Cardiol. 2009 May;21(5):223.Collins SP, Lindsell CJ, Kontos MC, Zuber M, Kipfer P, Jost CA, Kosmicki D, Michaels AD.Bedside prediction of increased filling pressure using acousticelectrocardiography.Am J Emerg Med. 2009 May;27(4):397-408.Minisi AJ, Quinn MS, Jeong H.Aortic baroreceptor function and depressed baroreflex sensitivity followingmyocardial infarction.Auton Neurosci. 2009 May 1.Salloum FN, Hoke NN, Seropian IM, Varma A, Ownby ED, Houser JE, Van Tassell BW,Abbate A.Parecoxib inhibits apoptosis in acute myocardial infarction due to permanentcoronary ligation but not due to ischemia-reperfusion.J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2009 Jun;53(6):495-8.Beiser DG, Carr GE, Edelson DP, Peberdy MA, Hoek TL.Derangements in blood glucose following initial resuscitation fromin-hospital cardiac arrest: a report from the national registry of cardiopulmonaryresuscitation.Resuscitation. 2009 Jun;80(6):624-30.Daubert JP, Winters SL, Subacius H, Berger RD, Ellenbogen KA, Taylor SG, Schaechter A,Howard A, Kadish A;Defibrillators In Nonischemic Cardiomyopathy Treatment Evaluation(DEFINITE) Investigators.Ventricular arrhythmia inducibility predictssubsequent ICD activation in nonischemic cardiomyopathy patients:a DEFINITE substudy.Pacing Clin Electrophysiol. 2009 Jun;32(6):755-61.Natarajan R, Salloum FN, Fisher BJ, Smithson L, Almenara J, Fowler AA 3rd.Prolyl hydroxylase inhibition attenuates post-ischemic cardiac injury viainduction of endoplasmic reticulum stress genes.Vascul Pharmacol. 2009 Jun 10.Maisel WH, Hauser RG, Hammill SC, Ellenbogen KA, Epstein AE, Hayes DL, Alpert JS,Berger RD, Curtis AB, Dubin AM, Estes NA 3rd, Gura MT, Krahn AD, Lampert R, LindsayBD, Wilkoff BL; Heart Rhythm Society Task Force on Lead Performance Policiesand Guidelines; American College of Cardiology (ACC); American Heart Association (AHA).Recommendations from the Heart Rhythm Society Task Force on LeadPerformance Policies and Guidelines: developed in collaboration with theAmerican College of Cardiology (ACC) and the American HeartAssociation (AHA).Heart Rhythm. 2009 Jun;6(6):869-85.Arena R, Arrowood JA, Fei D, Shelar S, Helm S, Kraft KA.The influence of sex on the relationship between heart rate recovery andother cardiovascular risk factors in apparently healthy subjects.Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2009 Jun 10.Collins SP, Peacock WF, Lindsell CJ, Clopton P, Diercks DB, Hiestand B, Hogan C,Kontos MC, Mueller C, Nowak R, Chen WJ, Huang CH, Abraham WT, Amsterdam E,Breidthardt T, Daniels L, Hasan A, Hudson M, McCord J, Naz T, Wagoner LE, Maisel A.S3 detection as a diagnostic and prognostic aid in emergency departmentpatients with acute dyspnea.Ann Emerg Med. 2009 Jun;53(6):748-57.Lesnefsky EJ, Minkler P, Hoppel CL.Enhanced modification of cardiolipin during ischemia in the aged heart.J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2009 Jun;46(6):1008-15.Paillard M, Gomez L, Augeul L, Loufouat J, Lesnefsky EJ, Ovize M.Postconditioning inhibits mPTP opening independent of oxidativephosphorylation and membrane potential.J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2009 Jun;46(6):902-9.Wood MA, Goldberg SM, Parvez B, Pathak V, Holland K, Ellenbogen AL, Han FT,Alexander D, Lau M, Reshko L, Goel A.Validation, evidence based medicine and Aristotle’s wives.J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2009 Jul;20(7):749-50.De Giorgio F, Abbate A, Stigliano E, Capelli A, Arena V.Hypoplastic coronary artery disease causing sudden death. Report of twocases and review of the literature.Cardiovasc Pathol. 2009 Jul 17Aldakkak M, Stowe DF, Lesnefsky EJ, Heisner JS, Chen Q, Camara AK.Modulation of Mitochondrial Bioenergetics in the Isolated Guinea PigBeating Heart by Potassium and Lidocaine Cardioplegia: Implications forCardioprotection.J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2009 Jul 17.Arena R, Arrowood JA, Fei DY, Helm S, Kraft KA.Maximal Aerobic Capacity and the Oxygen Uptake Efficiency Slope asPredictors of Large Artery Stiffness in Apparently Healthy Subjects.J Cardiopulm Rehabil Prev. 2009 July/August;29(4):248-254.Oliveira RB, Myers J, Araújo CG, Arena R, Mandic S, Bensimhon D, Abella J, Chase P,Guazzi M, Brubaker P, Moore B, Kitzman D, Peberdy MA.Does peak oxygen pulse complement peak oxygen uptake in risk stratifyingpatients with heart failure?.Am J Cardiol. 2009 Aug 15;104(4):554-8.Peberdy MA, Silver A, Ornato JP.Effect of caregiver gender, age, and feedback prompts on chest compressionrate and depth.Resuscitation. 2009 Aug 10.Pratt CM, Reiffel JA, Ellenbogen KA, Naccarelli GV, Kowey PR.Efficacy and safety of prescription omega-3-acid ethyl esters for theprevention of recurrent symptomatic atrial fibrillation: a prospective study.Am Heart J. 2009 Aug;158(2):163-169.e1-3.Shepard RK, Ellenbogen KA.Predicting outcome after implantable cardioverter-defibrillator therapy:a new piece to the puzzle?J Am Coll Cardiol. 2009 Aug 25;54(9):829-31.Ornato JP, Menown IB, Peberdy MA, Kontos MC, Riddell JW, Higgins GL 3rd,Maynard SJ, Adgey J.Body surface mapping vs 12-lead electrocardiography to detect ST-elevationmyocardial infarction.Am J Emerg Med. 2009 Sep;27(7):779-84.Hoke NN, Salloum FN, Loesser-Casey KE, Kukreja RC.Cardiac regenerative potential of adipose tissue-derived stem cells.Acta Physiol Hung. 2009 Sep;96(3):251-65.Vandeput F, Krall J, Ockaili R, Salloum FN, Florio V, Corbin JD, Francis SH, Kukreja RC,Movsesian MA.cGMP-hydrolytic activity and its inhibition by sildenafil in normal andfailing human and mouse myocardium.J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 2009 Sep;330(3):884-91Hoke NN, Salloum FN, Loesser-Casey KE, Kukreja RC.Cardiac regenerative potential of adipose tissue-derived stem cells.Acta Physiol Hung. 2009 Sep;96(3):251-65.Baker K, Flattery M, Salyer J, Haugh KH and Maltby M.Caregiving for patients requiring left ventricular assist device Support.Heart & Lung: The Journal of Acute and Critical Care. Accepted for publication.Bean M, Gibson D, Flattery M, Duncan A and Hess M.Psychosocial Factors, Quality of Life and Psychological Distress: EthnicDifferences in Patients with Heart Failure.Progress in Cardiovascular Nursing. Accepted for publication.Armenti V, Coscia L, Ohler LPregnancy outcomes following thoracic transplantationAmerican Journal of Transplantation, 2009Collins SP, Lindsell CJ, Kontos MC, Zuber M Kipfer P, Jost CA, Kosmicki D, Michaels AD.Rapid bedside prediction of elevated filling pressure inpatients with suspected heart failure. American Journal of EmergencyMedicine 2009 (in press).Kontos MC, Roberts BD, Jesse RL, Roberts CS, Tatum JL, Anderson FP, Ornato JP.Utility of the presenting electrocardiogram to predict mortality whentroponin level is used to diagnose myocardial infarction.American Journal of Emergency Medicine 2009 (in press).Collins SP, Lindsell CJ, Clopton P, Diercks D, Hiestand B, Hogan C, Kontos MC,Mueller C, Nowak R, Chen W, Huang C, Abraham WT, Amsterdam E, Breidthardt T, Daniels L,Hasan A, Hudson M, McCord J, Naz T, Wagoner LE, Maisel A.S3 Detection as a Diagnostic and Prognostic Aid in EmergencyDepartment Patients with Acute Dyspnea: Primary Results from theHEARD-IT Multinational Investigation.Ann Emer Med 2009, (in press).Gu X, Paulsen WHJ, Tisnado J, He Y, Li Z, Nixon JV.Malposition of a central venous catheter in the right main pulmonary arterydetected by transesophageal echocardiography.Journal of the American Society of Echocardiography (in press).Han J, He Y, Li Z, Zhang Y, Chen J, Wang, L, Gu X, Kontos MC, Nixon JV.Isolated double-orifice mitral valve anomaly by three-dimensionaltransesophageal echocardiography.Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine 2009 (in press).Goldstein LB, Adams R, Appel L, Braun L, Bushnell C, Chaturvedi S, Creager M,Culebras A, Eckel R, Hart R, Hinchey J, Howard V, Jauch E, Levine S, Meschia J, Moore W,Nixon JV, Pearson T.Primary Prevention of Ischemic Stroke. A guideline from the American HeartAssociation / American Stroke Association Council.Circulation 2009 (in press).Abbate A, Biondi-Zoccai GG, Van Tassell BW, Baldi A.Cellular preservation therapy in acute myocardial infarction.Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2009 Mar;296(3):H563-5.Vetrovec GW.SES for AMI: moving in the right direction.Catheter Cardiovasc Interv. 2009 Aug 1;74(2):333-4.Chen H, He Y, Li Z, Han J, Gu X, Wang L, Nixon JV.Myxoma of the left ventricular outflow tract.Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine 2009 (in press).

Cardiac Nursing NewsMarian Altman represented AACN at the Department of Health and HumanServices "Healthcare Associated Infections Stake Holders Meeting" in WashingtonDC. Also, she was an invited speaker at the Suffolk County Chapter of the AACN inApril where she presented "With Confidence - AACN Presidential Address" and "15Rhythms Every Nurse Should Know.” Altman completed her 3-year term as AACNboard member and 1-year term as treasurer of the association in July 2009.Kelly Carter was elected President (2009-2010) of the Greater Richmond Area Chapterof AACN.Roman Gunn was elected treasurer of the Greater Richmond Area Chapter of AACN.Lindsay Keilholtz was selected for the AACN Staff Nurse Advisory Task Force.Also, she attended a think tank meeting in California in August 2008 and then wasa guest at the AACN NTI in 5/09.Joelle Lemmons advanced to Clinical Nurse III on the Clinical Advancement Ladder.Sherry Lockhart was appointed Nurse Manager of the Cardiac Surgery IntensiveCare Unit in May.Ann McRae was selected for the VCH Health System Evidence Based PracticeProgram. Her topic will be "Utilizing IV infusion lines for blood draws".Linda Ohler attended the Transplant Conference in Sao Paolo, Brazil in May 2009,where she presented “Waitlist management for transplant candidates, ”Qualityof life for transplant recipients,” “Transmission of diseases from donor to transplantrecipients,” and “Patient education strategies in the 21st century.” Ohler presented“Developing a manuscript from an abstract” at the Transplant AdministratorsConference, Seattle, WA, and “Transplant Rejection: Is it more than an immuneresponse” at the University of Virginia Transplant Program in Charlottesville, VA.Ohler has added to her series of interviews with organ transplant leaders witharticles on Dr. Richard Lower, Dr. Thomas Starzl and Dr. Leonard Bailey.The articles have been published in either the American Society of TransplantationNewsletter or Progress in Transplantation.Jennifer Powers presented "A C-Section in the CICU? What do I do?” at theGreater Richmond Area Chapter’s Odyssey on Critical Care Symposium held inMarch 2009. Over 100 critical care RNs from across the state attended thesymposium.Ray Robertson, Clinical Coordinator CICU, was selected as the January 2009VCU Health System Employee of the Month.Laura Savage received the PCCN of the year award from the Greater RichmondChapter of AACN. She was named the chairperson for the 2010 NTI Workgroup.Also, she presented “Current Trends in Mechanical Circulatory Support” for theGRAC Extravaganza and for the Mended Hearts Chapter 28.Maria "Dhol" Tuason was named Public Relations Officer for the newly formedPhilippine Nursing Association -Richmond Sub Chapter. Tuason has played a keyrole in the organization of the group, working closely with the Asian-AmericanAssociation of Central Virginia for the promotion of health initiatives andcultural diversity.Regina Volman presented a poster/abstract titled “CardioWest Total ArtificialHeart-The Nursing Experience” at the 2009 Cardiopulmonary BypassConference held in Vancouver, British Columbia in March.Ashley Wise received the Novice Critical Care Nurse of the Year award andMarian Altman received the Leader of the Year award from the GreaterRichmond Area Chapter of AACN.DegreesDeborah Booker, RN, received BSNColleen Kienle, RN, received BSNSherry Lockhart, RN, CCRN, received Master of ScienceDorothy McCormick, RN, received BSNMary Monaghan Perkins, RN, received BSNAshley Phillips, RN, received MSNCynthia Solomon, RN, received MSNLaura Yeatman, RN, received an MSN.CertificationsCCRN CertificationWanalee ChuasiripornMegan EdwardsEmily FowlerRoman GunnGraham HuntLindsay KeilholtzSusan McConnellKris MullinHeather OlsonJennifer PowersMatt ScogginsRenee TierneyCSC CertificationJennifer CoxMonica FearnowTim GraffKelvin OwenMatt ScogginsNews, Awards and RecognitionAntonio Abbate received the Excellence in Teaching Award from the Departmentof Internal Medicine 2008-2009 house staff.Abbate mentored two Richmond-area high school students, Jessica Harrington andAngela Menna, who went on to win awards in the Richmond Metro Health Fairin the Medicine and Health Category.Michael Cowley was Course Director for the 4th Annual SCAI InterventionalCardiology Fellows Course, Las Vegas, NV.Kenneth Ellenbogen is serving as the guest editor for Cardiosource’s Arrhythmiasand Atrial Fibrillation Clinical Collections. Free, unlimited online access to thecollections is the result of collaboration between the American College of CardiologyFoundation and the Heart Rhythm Society.Ellenbogen received the Simon Dack Award for excellence in the critical evaluationsof manuscripts for the Journal of the American College of Cardiology for both theexcellence and the number/timeliness of reviews and for highest evaluations in termsof critical thinking and constructive comments.Cardiac Pacing and ICDs, 5th Edition, Blackwell Publishing, which is authored,revised and updated by Ellenbogen and Mark Wood, was recently published.Frederick Han took 2nd place in the Clinical Science Awards at the Annual VCUHSResident Research Day. His oral presentation, “Results of a minimally invasivesurgical pulmonary vein isolation and ganglionic plexi ablation for atria fibrillation—a single center experience with 12-month follow up.”Nick Hoke, doctoral student from the Biochemistry Dept. and working underRakesh Kukreja’s supervision, will be funded from AHA. He received 5th percentileranking for his project on stem cells and myocardial regeneration.Rakesh Kureja, was honored on Sept. 10, 2009 with the University DistinguishedScholarship Award, Virginia Commonwealth University’s highest award for facultyscholarship. The award was given during VCU’s 26th Opening Faculty Addressand Convocation.A paper co-authored by Kukreja, “Endogenously synthesized microRNA induceprotective effect against ischemia/reperfusion injury,” was chosen for inclusionin a collection of outstanding articles in the field of molecular medicine publishedin FEBS Letters in the years 2007 and 2008. The article has been re-publishedin FEBS’ first virtual special issue on “FEBS Letters Molecular Medicine”.“A novel role of microRNA in ischemic preconditioning: upregulation of eNOS andHSP70,” authored by Kukreja, Fadi Salloum and Chang Yin, originally publishedin Circulation Research, was selected by Faculty of 1000 Biology as one of the mostinteresting papers published in the biological sciences based on the recommendationsof over 2000 of the world's top researchers.Ian Nixon was an invited speaker at the 5th Five-Continent InternationalSymposium on Cardiovascular Diseases in Beijing, China, April 2009. The titleof his presentation was "Native and Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis in the USA.”The symposium was hosted by the Beijing Anzhen Hospital and the Beijing Instituteof Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases. Nixon’s personal hosts were Dr. Yihua Heand Dr. Xiaoyan Gu, two cardiologists from the Echocardiography Departmentat the Anzhen Hospital that each spent a year working in the echocardiography labat Pauley Heart Center.Nixon has been appointed to the Writing Committee on Appropriate Use Criteriafor Cardiac Computed Tomography by the American Heart Association. Also,he has authored chapters for two books now in press: Precis: Primary and PreventiveCare; An Update in Obstetrics and Gynecology, 4th edition, ed.TE Nolan, AmericanCollege of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Washington, DC. and Current Diagnosisand Treatment in Cardiology, 3rd edition, ed. MH Crawford, Lange MedicalBooks/ McGraw-Hill, New York, NY, 2009.Mimi Peberdy has been named as a charter member of the Veteran's AdministrationCardiology Merit Review Subcommittee responsible for reviewing and grading allof the cardiovascular research grants in the entire VA system.Roshi Robati placed 2nd in the Basic Science Awards category for his oralpresentation, “Prevention of LV systolic dysfunction induced by exogenousinterleukin-1B with atovastatin: a model of septic cardiomyopathy,” a researchproject he worked on under the supervision of Antonio Abbate.Amit Varma received the Henry Christian Award from the American Federationfor Medical Research, in recognition of his outstanding abstracts submitted atthe 2009 the ASCI/AAP Joint Meeting.The 2009 Dr. Carolyn McCue Woman Cardiologist of the Year Award program is underway.The winner will be announced in late October, and an award ceremony and other related activitieswill take place in February 2010. “We are extremely pleased with the quantity and qualityof nominations we received,” said Dr. George Vetrovec. “Many of the most accomplished women cardiologistsin the country were nominated, making it a highly competitive award and a tough decision for our award panel.”Award Panel members included: George A. Beller, md, University of Virginia; Robert O. Bonow, md, Northwestern University; Anne B. Curtis, md, Universityof South Florida; Pamela S. Douglas, md, Duke University; William C. Little, md, Wake Forest University School of Medicine; Mary Ann Peberdy, md, VCUMedical Center; Kiran B. Sagar, md, University of Wisconsin; Kim Allan Williams, md, University of Chicago and George W. Vetrovec, md, VCU Medical Center.“We are grateful to our awardpanel, and very pleased that allhave agreed to serve again this year,”Vetrovec said. “They have theirwork cut out for them, as the slateof candidates for this year’s awardis every bit as impressive as 2008’s.”The McCue Award honorsthe memory of Dr. Carolyn McCue,one of the few female cardiologistsof her time and a pioneer in thefield of pediatric cardiology, whopracticed at the Medical Collegeof Virginia, now the VCU MedicalCenter, for 42 years. She createdand chaired the school's PediatricCardiology Division for 20 years,during which she was instrumentalin establishing pediatric cardiologyclinics in medically underservedcommunities throughout Virginia.The award, which carriesa $10,000 prize, is made possibleby a grant from the McCue familyto encourage and inspire otheryoung women to pursue careersin cardiology.Noel Bairey Merz, md, a nationally recognized authority on preventive cardiology and women’sheart health, took the top honor in the inaugural Dr. Carolyn McCue Woman Cardiologist of theYear Award program. Bairey Merz holds the Women's Guild Endowed Chair in Women's Healthand is director of the Women's Heart Center, director of the Preventive and Rehabilitative CardiacCenter and Professor of Medicine at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute in Los Angeles.Keyur Shah, md joins Pauley Heart Center’s Heart Failure TeamKeyur Shah picked the hottest month of the year to move to Richmond and start workat Pauley Heart Center, but it didn’t faze him. He grew up in Richmond, as did his wife,Mansi, and despite the perils of August in this city, they were thrilled to be moving home.Shah said that practicing at VCU offered an opportunity to be part of an establishedand expanding heart failure and transplant program, anchored by great mentors such asDrs. Hess, Cooke and Kasirajan.Shah received his undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia, followed byan MD from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. It was during his internalmedicine residency at the University of Maryland Medical Center that he decided to specializein cardiology.“Doing cardiology rounds with the attendings convinced me that this was the specialty I wanted to pursue,” said Shah. “I really likebeing able to directly help people, and in this rapidly evolving field, new or enhanced therapies are making their way to the clinical settingall the time. This is particularly true in treating heart failure, with advances in medicines, devices and procedures that are greatlyimproving the quality of life for heart failure patients. It also is an area of tremendous potential, and that is an exciting thing to beinvolved in.”Another aspect of VCU Medical Center that Shah found particularly attractive is the opportunity for interdisciplinary research andclinical care.“I am very interested in pulmonary hypertension and its relationship to heart disease, which gets considerable focus here throughcollaboration between the pulmonary and cardiology divisions. I hope to be part of, and even strengthen that collaboration,” Shah said.When their busy work schedules permit it, Shah and Mansi—she is a public defender—enjoy traveling abroad.