Hypoxia is a potent regulator of cellular function and the foremost pathophysiological factor in ischemic conditions, playing a significant role in many cardiovascular disorders. However, most in vitro research neglects the non-uniform nature of tissue hypoxia, which is characterized by oxygen gradients. To date, the lack of adequate tools has prevented detailed investigation into how diverse oxygen landscapes affect intercellular communication or contribute to cardiovascular disease. Towards understanding this, I engineer biological microsystems with tight microfluidic oxygen control to study cell and tissue function in heterogeneous oxygen microenvironments. I will present my work to recapitulate cardiovascular injury and disease, including a myocardial infarct border-zone-on-a-chip model that demonstrates the unique impact of an oxygen gradient in replicating key features of a heart attack. I will also introduce ongoing work to model aspects of myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury and peripheral artery disease. Overall, my work aims to enhance preclinical models and provide mechanistic insight into human physiology and pathophysiology.
Dr. Megan Rexius-Hall is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Southern California, where she is a member of Dr. Megan McCain’s Laboratory for Living Systems Engineering. Dr. Rexius-Hall earned her B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Boston University. She was previously employed as an Associate Engineer at CFD Research Corporation in Huntsville, Alabama. She then joined the University of Illinois Chicago as a Ph.D. student co-advised by David Eddington in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Jalees Rehman in the Department of Pharmacology. Dr. Rexius-Hall’s research focuses on combining cell biology, materials science, and microfabrication techniques to engineer microphysiological systems with integrated functional metrics. Her work has been recognized with an AHA Postdoctoral Fellowship and NIH NHLBI Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00). Dr. Rexius-Hall envisions future research contributions using engineered microphysiological systems and in-depth functional and molecular analyses to uncover the mechanistic underpinnings of injury and disease states, identify druggable targets, and conduct preclinical drug screening. Dr. Rexius-Hall is also a dedicated teacher and mentor. She has guest lectured for biomaterials, tissue engineering, and microfluidics courses and mentored students as part of the NSF REU, NIH STEP-UP, and LA-HIP programs.