Dr. Logothetis Receives a $3M RO1 Grant from NIH

Please join me in congratulating Dr. Logothetis for receiving a $3M RO1 grant from NIH!

The “Structural determinants of PIP2 regulation” is an NIH Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) grant that was initiated in 1998 by Diomedes Logothetis and was just renewed for a 6th consecutive cycle for years 23 through 26. This is commendable!

This $3M grant continues to lead in the field of phosphatidylinositol-bisphosphate (PIP2) regulation of ion channels and the context of NHLBI by focusing on developing small molecule inhibitors of the G protein-gated K+ channel, which is overactive in age-dependent atrial fibrillation.

The Logothetis group has developed powerful computational models that provide great structural insights into the mechanism of activation of these K+ channels via PIP2, thus providing a unique platform for structure-based drug design. The grant provides subcontract support to the University of South Florida (Dr. Noujaim) for animal models of atrial fibrillation and at Northeastern (Dr. Thakur) for medicinal chemistry.