Using fungi to combat cardiovascular disease
Amy Fraley has since found her objects of study in all kingdoms of life – primarily in places where hardly anyone looks. At the University of Michigan, she researched a bioactive fungus that was discovered growing on bat guano in a cave. During a student-led Chalk Talk*, Fraley and a colleague recognized the potential for using the natural compounds from this fungus (Malbrancheamide) to probe a protein complex that plays a vital role in cardiovascular diseases. *Presentation with chalk on a blackboard
This method led them to describe in greater detail the protein-protein interactions between two key players in cardiac hypertrophy (Beyett et al. 2019), a pathological thickening of the heart muscle. Furthermore, they could show that the compound is able to block hypertrophy and has therefore therapeutic potential.
