Leo Wan, a professor of biomedical engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, will be featured at the Capital Region American Heart Association’s inaugural research reception, “The Science Behind Your Giving,” on November 15.

“The Rensselaer community is proud to support and participate in the important work made possible by the Capital Region American Heart Association,” said Paul Martin, the assistant vice president of administration at Rensselaer. “Hearing directly from researchers like Dr. Wan about their work is always a worthwhile experience.”

The American Heart Association funded $2.3 million in research grants in the Capital Region this year, including Wan’s research, which looks at the chirality, or “handedness,” of developing heart cells. 

Chirality is a property of asymmetry that is identifiable when objects, such as right and left hands, are mirror images of each other. This cytoskeletal feature can determine the difference between a healthy heart and a diseased one during critical stages of development.

Wan’s team has also looked at the effect of certain drugs on the chirality of cardiac cells. This research has the potential to prevent congenital heart defects by promoting healthy heart development.

Wan’s research is also funded by The National Institutes of Health, March of Dimes, Pew Charitable Trusts, and the National Science Foundation.

“The Science Behind Your Giving” is hosted by the RNA Institute at the University at Albany.