CAREER: A Unified Multiscale Computational Approach to Model Vein Graft Failure

NSF Award Search · 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT · $500,000 · view on nsf.gov ↗

Abstract

Coronary artery disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. One common treatment is the coronary bypass surgery, which is performed on about 350,000 patients in the United States each year. This surgery is considered the gold standard treatment for patients with disease in multiple coronary arteries. Vein grafts are used as bypass conduits in majority of these surgeries and have unacceptably high failure rates leading to reoperation and increased risk of complications. The underlying mechanisms of vein graft failure remain poorly understood. This Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) project will use computer models of blood flow and blood vessels to understand these mechanisms of adaptations at different biological length scales. The computer models will also provide a framework for virtually testing biotechnologies and therapies for improving vein graft performance. In addition, the project includes educational programs to train students in these computer modeling tools, apply them to other blood vessel related diseases and strengthen biomedical engineering education through new educational modules and training opportunities. Coronary vein graft remodeling is a complex process influenced by multiple factors, including hemodynamic loads, inflammation and surgical trauma. Understanding how these factors interact across biological scales to determine the vein graft outcomes remains a major challenge. Recent advances in multiscale computational models of vascular adaptation can help gain insights into these adaptations; multiscale computational models allow for precise and controlled manipulation of individual contributing factors (either independently or in combination) while physics-based multiscale models can provide mechanistic insights across spatial and temporal scales. This project integrates several complementary modeling approaches to capture vein graft remodeling across biological levels. Specifically, it combines a vascular fi

Key facts

NSF award ID
2543650
Awardee
Iowa State University (IA)
SAM.gov UEI
DQDBM7FGJPC5
PI
Abhay Bangalore Ramachandra
Primary program
01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
All programs
BIOMECHANICS, MB-Mechanobiology, CAREER-Faculty Erly Career Dev, EXP PROG TO STIM COMP RES, GRADUATE INVOLVEMENT
Estimated total
$500,000
Funds obligated
$500,000
Transaction type
Standard Grant
Period
08/01/2026 → 07/31/2031