A heart transplant is a priceless gift to a fortunate patient with end-stage heart failure. Regrettably, transplanted hearts develop a diffuse vasculopathy that limits their longevity. Dr. Badiwala is dedicated toward a career as a cardiac surgeon-scientist with an interest in developing novel strategies to preserve endothelial function and prevent cardiac allograft vasculopathy after heart transplantation. His PhD thesis focuses on evaluating novel endothelial protective strategies in the context of immunosuppressive therapy, on preventing neointimal hyperplasia after vascular injury. Dr. Badiwala is also defining the role of a novel endothelial chemoattractant protein, EGFL7, on the vascular endothelial response to hypoxia-reperfusion injury to determine whether it is a novel target for therapeutic intervention. His other research interests include investigating novel cardiac and endothelial protection strategies during donor heart preservation and cardiac transplantation.
Left to Right: Mrs. Pixie Bigelow, Dr. Mitesh Badiwala and Dr. C. Wittnich, Director, CSCP