Biography
Weizhen (Eva) Li is a Research Officer in the Atherosclerosis Vascular Remodelling Group at the Heart Research Institute. She first joined the institute for her Honours research in 2019 before completing a Bachelor of Biomedical Engineering (Honours) at the University of Sydney in 2020. She then continued her PhD research at the institute and, upon completing her PhD in 2024, transitioned into her current role as a Research Officer to conduct postdoctoral research.
Project description
Atherosclerosis, a chronic inflammatory vascular disease, causes cardiovascular events such as myocardial infarctions and strokes, predominantly when unstable plaques rupture. The phenotype of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) plays a crucial role in plaque stability, with plaque destabilisation occurring due to the adverse SMC trans-differentiation and consequent loss of protective SMCs in the fibrous cap. This research aims to investigate the plaque-stabilising effects of anti-inflammatory therapies on vascular cell phenotypes, which offers valuable insights into atherosclerosis pathology and potential therapies. To achieve this, advanced techniques are used such as vascular cell fate, including mouse genetics, lineage tracing, micro-dissection, animal surgeries, single cell RNA sequencing, spatial transcriptomics, and confocal microscopy.