معرفی
Richard K. Assoian is a Professor of Pharmacology at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and a member of the Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutics. He is affiliated with the Department of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics, where he investigates the mechanobiology of aging and cardiovascular disease.
- B.A. in Natural Science, Johns Hopkins University (1975)
- Ph.D. in Biochemistry, University of Chicago (1981)
His research focuses on how cells sense physical microenvironment properties, particularly extracellular matrix (ECM) stiffness, and convert these into chemical signals affecting actin cytoskeleton, intracellular forces, and cell fate decisions. Early work included purification of TGF-beta with Michael Sporn at NIH.
Recent publications highlight his work on BCAA metabolism in heart failure (2022), lipid droplets and hypertension (2023), and integrin-cadherin interactions (2016). These studies span cardiovascular disease, cell adhesion, and transcriptional regulation.
He has held leadership roles, including Director of the Program in Translational Biomechanics, co-Director of the NSF Center for Engineering Mechanobiology, and acting Director of Biomedical Graduate Studies at Penn. His work bridges mechanobiology, aging, and translational therapeutics.
