Ischemic Preconditioning

Roberto Bolli, M.D., Jewish Hospital Heart and Lung Institute Distinguished Chair in Cardiology at the University of Louisville School of Medicine, studies ischemic preconditioning – a phenomenon where a heart that experiences a brief loss of blood flow actually becomes resistant to damage that may be caused by a major heart attack.

His work has established U of L as a world authority in cardiac ischemia.  Bolli and his fellow researchers are recipients of an $11.7 million program project grant from the National Institutes of Health to build on their research into ways the heart can protect itself from tissue damage at the molecular and cellular level.  The team hopes that their work will lead to new therapies for high-risk patients.