CICMD Trainee Hanna Costello wins American Heart Association postdoctoral fellowship.

“Hannah Costello, a postdoctoral associate in Dr. Michelle Gumz Lab in the Department of Physiology, has been awarded a postdoctoral fellowship. This two-year award will fund Dr. Costello’s research investigating the role of the adrenal circadian clock in steroid regulation, kidney function, both key regulators of blood pressure control. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S., with hypertension being a major risk factor for cardiovascular mortality. Hypertension is highly prevalent, with nearly half of Americans being hypertensive. Blood pressure has a rhythm, and loss of this rhythm (non-dipping) is also associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Improving the circadian blood pressure profile, through shifting to a dipping pattern, is recognized as an important aspect of management of hypertension. This research aims to address the critical gap in our knowledge of how the circadian clock contributes to blood pressure control and may help pave the way for targeted therapeutic interventions to treat hypertension.”