# Organ Specific Project - Heart

> **NIH NIH U54** · CHILDREN'S HOSP OF PHILADELPHIA · 2021 · $59,566

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY – HEART ORGAN SPECIFIC PROJECT
The human heart is vital for our survival and health, and it presents remarkable anatomical, cellular and
functional heterogeneity. The four chambers of the heart, together with specialized arteries, veins, valves and
conduction cells, perform distinct yet essential physiological functions. A significant gap of knowledge is that
different cell's molecular signature, spatial distribution and interactions, and functional state remain little
understood at the single-cell level. The goal of the heart Organ-Specific Project (OSP) is to address this
knowledge gap and generate high quality, single-cell resolution, longitudinal imaging and multiomics data of
normal human hearts across the entire human lifespan. To achieve this goal, we propose the following three
specific aims: 1) To refine protocols of biospecimen processing, multiomics and imaging assays and define
inter-individual variability using our existing banked normal human hearts. 2) To procure, archive and annotate
high-quality normal heart samples across the entire human life span. We have established a streamlined
procurement and biorepository infrastructure to support our heart OSP. We will procure normal heart and bone
from the same donor of 5 different age groups across the entire human life span. 3) To spatially and
quantitatively profile normal heart specimens across the entire human lifespan using a set of robust and
scalable imaging and single-cell omics assays. In summary, the heart OSP will broadly impact the entire
research community and jumpstart basic-science and medical discoveries based on a sophisticated
understanding of the key molecular circuits underlying the development and aging of human heart.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10251352
- **Project number:** 5U54HL156090-02
- **Recipient organization:** CHILDREN'S HOSP OF PHILADELPHIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Liming Pei
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $59,566
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-09-01 → 2022-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10251352

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10251352, Organ Specific Project - Heart (5U54HL156090-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10251352. Licensed CC0.

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