# Use of Novel Multi-modality Imaging to Evaluate the Relationship Between Sleep Duration, Vascular Inflammation, and Visceral Adiposity

> **NIH NIH K23** · ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI · 2024 · $191,248

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
The proposed training grant is designed to advance the academic career of Dr. Vaishnavi Kundel, MD, by
building upon her strong background in clinical sleep medicine to engage in patient-oriented research, and
develop expertise in exploring the role of sleep in cardiometabolic disease risk. Through this proposal, she will
obtain multidisciplinary training to investigate chronic sleep deprivation and sleep irregularity as potentially
modifiable risk factors for atherosclerosis and visceral adiposity measured using multi-modality imaging - hybrid
18fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/MRI. Research plan: The proposed research builds on Dr. Kundel's pilot
studies funded by the AASM. The aims are to determine whether habitual short sleep duration and sleep
irregularity are associated with increased vascular inflammation and visceral adiposity (which is strongly linked
to increased CVD risk), independent of OSA (often a confounder in these associations). We will utilize multi-day
actigraphy to collect objective sleep metrics, and PET/MRI to measure vascular inflammation and visceral
adipose tissue (VAT) metabolic activity (a novel marker of adipose tissue inflammation) in the recruited patients.
With successful completion of the proposed training and research, we hope to underscore the role of chronic
sleep deprivation and sleep irregularity in cardiometabolic risk, establishing an index of imaging biomarkers for
future research. Moreover, the results will provide direction for future (R01) proposals - laying the groundwork
for developing multidisciplinary collaborations to elucidate mechanisms by which sleep modulates inflammation,
with a long-term goal of identifying biomarkers of early cardiovascular risk in this subset of patients, and
designing sleep extension studies. Career Development: Dr. Kundel's training plan features an outstanding
research environment at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai along with nationally renowned mentors
and advisors with complimentary expertise. Her primary mentoring team comprises of (a) Dr. Neomi Shah, MD,
MPH, MS (expert in obstructive sleep apnea [OSA] and cardiovascular (CV) diseases, and application of
advanced cardiovascular imaging in OSA) (b) Dr. Indu Ayappa, PhD, (recipient of a mentored K-24 award, with
expertise in OSA, sleep physiology, and use of actigraphy for objective sleep assessments) (c) Drs. Zahi Fayad
and Philip Robson, PhD (experts in use of multimodality imaging for assessment of atherosclerosis and organ
system biology). Her training features a combination of carefully designed coursework and practical experiences
in 1) actigraphy for comprehensive assessments of objective sleep metrics 2) multi-modality cardiometabolic
imaging 3) clinical study design and patient-oriented research 4) training in biomarker science for future
proposals. Together, her mentors and advisors have a successful track record of mentoring junior faculty in
career development awards, with extensive collabor...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10907696
- **Project number:** 5K23HL161324-03
- **Recipient organization:** ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI
- **Principal Investigator:** Vaishnavi Kundel
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $191,248
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-09-01 → 2027-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10907696

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10907696, Use of Novel Multi-modality Imaging to Evaluate the Relationship Between Sleep Duration, Vascular Inflammation, and Visceral Adiposity (5K23HL161324-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10907696. Licensed CC0.

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