Lothar A. Blatter

Lothar A. Blatter, MD, Dr. med., holds the John H. and Margaret V. Krehbiel Professor of Cardiology at Rush Medical College, affiliated with the Department of Physiology & Biophysics at Rush University. His research group focuses on intracellular calcium regulation in cardiovascular cells, with specific emphasis on excitation-contraction coupling and excitation-transcription coupling in cardiac muscle.

Key research areas include:

• Calcium signaling mechanisms in heart failure
• Mitochondrial calcium dynamics and energetics
• Redox signaling in cardiac tissue
• IP3 and ryanodine receptor function
• Cardiac arrhythmias and calcium alternans

His work employs advanced techniques such as high-resolution confocal imaging, electrophysiology, transgenic mouse models, and mitochondrial respiration analysis. Dr. Blatter's publications highlight his contributions to understanding elementary calcium release events (Ca2+ sparks, blinks, and alternans) in both normal and pathological cardiac conditions.

Notable scientific contributions include:

• NIH R01 grants as PI or Co-PI (HL155762, HL164453, HL134781, HL132871, HL057832, HL080101, HL101235, HL062231)
• Leducq Foundation Transatlantic Network membership
• Editorial contributions and commentary invitations in top journals

Dr. Blatter actively mentors trainees, including Maria Yuriana Oropeza-Almazan (AHA Post-Doctoral Fellow). His laboratory collaborates with multidisciplinary teams at Rush University and beyond, utilizing cutting-edge tools like the Seahorse flux analyzer for metabolic studies and adenoviral expression systems for protein engineering.