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Ronald Joseph Vagnozzi

TitleAssistant Professor
InstitutionUniversity of Colorado Denver - Anschutz Medical Campus
DepartmentSOM-MED
ORCID ORCID Icon0000-0002-8027-1809 Additional info

    Collapse Biography 
    Collapse education and training
    Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Cincinnati, OHPost-Doc04/2019Molecular Cardiovascular Biology
    Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PAPh.D.08/2013Cell and Developmental Biology
    Saint Joseph’s University, Philadelphia, PAB.S.06/2007Biology
    Collapse awards and honors
    2019Melvin L. Marcus Early Career Investigator Award in Cardiovascular Sciences, American Heart Association
    2019Richard J. Bing Young Investigator Award, International Society for Heart Research
    2017Executive Co-Directors Award, Cincinnati Children's Hospital
    2014Jeffrey Robbins Research Award, Cincinnati Children's Hospital
    2010Center for Translational Medicine Excellence in Science Award, Thomas Jefferson University
    2007The Biology Award, Saint Joseph's University, College of Arts and Sciences

    Collapse Research 
    Collapse research activities and funding
    1R01HL169578-01     (VAGNOZZI, RONALD JOSEPH)Jun 10, 2023 - May 31, 2028
    NIH
    Mechanisms of Cardiac Injury Resolution by CX3CR1+ Macrophages
    Role: Principal Investigator

    R01HL169578     (VAGNOZZI, RONALD JOSEPH)Jun 10, 2023 - May 31, 2028
    NIH
    Mechanisms of Cardiac Injury Resolution by CX3CR1+ Macrophages
    Role: Principal Investigator

    19CDA34670044     (Ronald J Vagnozzi)Apr 1, 2019 - Mar 31, 2022
    AHA
    Genetic Modulation of Macrophage-Fibroblast Crosstalk to Enhance Tissue Healing after Myocardial Infarction
    Role Description: The goal of this project is to determine how selective modulation of macrophage subtypes in the infarcted heart alters the fibrotic response, using genetic lineage tracing of cardiac fibroblasts and myofibroblasts.
    Role: Principal Investigator

    F32HL128083     (VAGNOZZI, RONALD J)Apr 1, 2015 - Mar 31, 2018
    NIH
    The Role of Sca-1+ and ABCG2+ Cardiac Progenitor Cells in Endogenous Heart Regeneration
    Role: Principal Investigator

    Collapse Bibliographic 
    Collapse selected publications
    Publications listed below are automatically derived from MEDLINE/PubMed and other sources, which might result in incorrect or missing publications. Faculty can login to make corrections and additions.
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    1. Pe?a B, Bosi S, Knight WE, Cavasin M, Ferrari I, Musani SA, Cobb TM, Kumar M, Montelongo E, Abdel-Hafiz M, Zanetti M, Farahzad N, Alegret N, McKinsey TA, Graw SL, Sbaizero O, Chi C, Vagnozzi RJ, Song K, Taylor MRG, Prato M, Park D, Mestroni L. Biocompatibility Assessment of an Injectable Carbon Nanotube-Functionalized Reverse Thermal Gel for Cardiac Tissue Engineering Applications. ACS Appl Bio Mater. 2025 May 09. PMID: 40343469.
      View in: PubMed
    2. Gu S, Kopecky BJ, Pe?a B, Vagnozzi RJ, Lahm T. Sex-dependent Pathophysiology and Therapeutic Considerations in Right Heart Disease. Can J Cardiol. 2025 Mar 05. PMID: 40054579.
      View in: PubMed
    3. Schuetze KB, Stratton MS, Bagchi RA, Hobby ARH, Felisbino MB, Rubino M, Toni LS, Reges C, Cavasin MA, McMahan RH, Alexanian M, Vagnozzi RJ, McKinsey TA. BRD4 inhibition rewires cardiac macrophages toward a protective phenotype marked by low MHC class II expression. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2025 Feb 01; 328(2):H294-H309. PMID: 39716819.
      View in: PubMed
    4. Johansen AKZ, Kasam RK, Vagnozzi RJ, Lin SJ, Gomez-Arroyo J, Shittu A, Bowers SLK, Kuwabara Y, Grimes KM, Warrick K, Sargent MA, Baldwin TA, Quaggin SE, Barski A, Molkentin JD. Transcription Factor 21 Regulates Cardiac Myofibroblast Formation and Fibrosis. Circ Res. 2025 Jan 03; 136(1):44-58. PMID: 39629593.
      View in: PubMed
    5. Stafford P, Vagnozzi RJ. Hypoxic neutrophils enflame the infarcted heart. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2024 Nov 01; 327(5):H1303-H1305. PMID: 39453434.
      View in: PubMed
    6. Alexanian M, Padmanabhan A, Nishino T, Travers JG, Ye L, Pelonero A, Lee CY, Sadagopan N, Huang Y, Auclair K, Zhu A, An Y, Ekstrand CA, Martinez C, Teran BG, Flanigan WR, Kim CK, Lumbao-Conradson K, Gardner Z, Li L, Costa MW, Jain R, Charo I, Combes AJ, Haldar SM, Pollard KS, Vagnozzi RJ, McKinsey TA, Przytycki PF, Srivastava D. Chromatin remodelling drives immune cell-fibroblast communication in heart failure. Nature. 2024 Nov; 635(8038):434-443. PMID: 39443808.
      View in: PubMed
    7. Lumbao-Conradson K, Vagnozzi RJ. Unstrain my heart: can cardiac macrophages reverse remodel fibrosis? Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2024 05 01; 326(5):H1266-H1268. PMID: 38578236.
      View in: PubMed
    8. Pfleger J, Vagnozzi RJ. Early Career Research Support From the American Heart Association: to the Second Century and Beyond. Circ Res. 2024 03; 134(5):478-481. PMID: 38422179.
      View in: PubMed
    9. Baldwin TA, Teuber JP, Kuwabara Y, Subramani A, Lin SJ, Kanisicak O, Vagnozzi RJ, Zhang W, Brody MJ, Molkentin JD. Palmitoylation-dependent regulation of cardiomyocyte Rac1 signaling activity and minor effects on cardiac hypertrophy. J Biol Chem. 2023 12; 299(12):105426. PMID: 37926281.
      View in: PubMed
    10. Vagnozzi RJ, Robinson EL. Frataxin Deacetylation in Macrophages: Avoiding SIRTain Myocyte Death. Circ Res. 2023 09 15; 133(7):648-650. PMID: 37708247.
      View in: PubMed
    11. Gafranek JT, D'Aniello E, Ravisankar P, Thakkar K, Vagnozzi RJ, Lim HW, Salomonis N, Waxman JS. Sinus venosus adaptation models prolonged cardiovascular disease and reveals insights into evolutionary transitions of the vertebrate heart. Nat Commun. 2023 09 07; 14(1):5509. PMID: 37679366.
      View in: PubMed
    12. Bowers SLK, Meng Q, Kuwabara Y, Huo J, Minerath R, York AJ, Sargent MA, Prasad V, Saviola AJ, Galindo DC, Hansen KC, Vagnozzi RJ, Yutzey KE, Molkentin JD. Col1a2-Deleted Mice Have Defective Type I Collagen and Secondary Reactive Cardiac Fibrosis with Altered Hypertrophic Dynamics. Cells. 2023 08 30; 12(17). PMID: 37681905.
      View in: PubMed
    13. McKinsey TA, Foo R, Anene-Nzelu CG, Travers JG, Vagnozzi RJ, Weber N, Thum T. Emerging epigenetic therapies of cardiac fibrosis and remodelling in heart failure: from basic mechanisms to early clinical development. Cardiovasc Res. 2023 02 03; 118(18):3482-3498. PMID: 36004821.
      View in: PubMed
    14. Alexanian M, Padmanabhan A, Nishino T, Travers JG, Ye L, Lee CY, Sadagopan N, Huang Y, Pelonero A, Auclair K, Zhu A, Teran BG, Flanigan W, Kim CK, Lumbao-Conradson K, Costa M, Jain R, Charo I, Haldar SM, Pollard KS, Vagnozzi RJ, McKinsey TA, Przytycki PF, Srivastava D. Chromatin Remodeling Drives Immune-Fibroblast Crosstalk in Heart Failure Pathogenesis. bioRxiv. 2023 Jan 07. PMID: 36711864.
      View in: PubMed
    15. Vagnozzi RJ. Starting off strong: Rigor and reproducibility in the early career. J Mol Cell Cardiol Plus. 2022 Dec; 2:100022. PMID: 39802500.
      View in: PubMed
    16. Vagnozzi RJ, McKinsey TA. T cell immunotherapy for cardiac fibrosis: mRNA starts the CAR. Cell Stem Cell. 2022 03 03; 29(3):352-354. PMID: 35245466.
      View in: PubMed
    17. Vagnozzi RJ, Kasam RK, Sargent MA, Molkentin JD. Cardiac Cell Therapy Fails to Rejuvenate the Chronically Scarred Rodent Heart. Circulation. 2021 07 27; 144(4):328-331. PMID: 34310160.
      View in: PubMed
    18. Sun F, Wang G, Pradhan A, Xu K, Gomez-Arroyo J, Zhang Y, Kalin GT, Deng Z, Vagnozzi RJ, He H, Dunn AW, Wang Y, York AJ, Hegde RS, Woods JC, Kalin TV, Molkentin JD, Kalinichenko VV. Nanoparticle Delivery of STAT3 Alleviates Pulmonary Hypertension in a Mouse Model of Alveolar Capillary Dysplasia. Circulation. 2021 08 17; 144(7):539-555. PMID: 34111939.
      View in: PubMed
    19. Ferrari I, Vagnozzi RJ. Mechanisms and strategies for a therapeutic cardiac immune response. J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2021 09; 158:82-88. PMID: 34051237.
      View in: PubMed
    20. Koch WJ, Vagnozzi RJ, Wang TJ, Liao R, Houser SR. Thomas L. Force, MD: 1951-2020: A Brilliant Physician-Scientist Gone Too Soon. Circ Res. 2021 01 08; 128(1):6-7. PMID: 33411629.
      View in: PubMed
    21. Vagnozzi RJ. SupErbB monocytes? Innate immune cells help the heart adapt. J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2021 03; 152:92-94. PMID: 33310054.
      View in: PubMed
    22. Vagnozzi RJ, Molkentin JD. Resident macrophages keep mitochondria running in the heart. Cell Res. 2020 12; 30(12):1057-1058. PMID: 33139923.
      View in: PubMed
    23. Weinberger T, Esfandyari D, Messerer D, Percin G, Schleifer C, Thaler R, Liu L, Stremmel C, Schneider V, Vagnozzi RJ, Schwanenkamp J, Fischer M, Busch K, Klapproth K, Ishikawa-Ankerhold H, Kl?sges L, Titova A, Molkentin JD, Kobayashi Y, Engelhardt S, Massberg S, Waskow C, Perdiguero EG, Schulz C. Ontogeny of arterial macrophages defines their functions in homeostasis and inflammation. Nat Commun. 2020 09 11; 11(1):4549. PMID: 32917889.
      View in: PubMed
    24. Hortells L, Valiente-Alandi I, Thomas ZM, Agnew EJ, Schnell DJ, York AJ, Vagnozzi RJ, Meyer EC, Molkentin JD, Yutzey KE. A specialized population of Periostin-expressing cardiac fibroblasts contributes to postnatal cardiomyocyte maturation and innervation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020 09 01; 117(35):21469-21479. PMID: 32817558.
      View in: PubMed
    25. Vagnozzi RJ, Sargent MA, Molkentin JD. Cardiac Cell Therapy Rejuvenates the Infarcted Rodent Heart via Direct Injection but Not by Vascular Infusion. Circulation. 2020 03 24; 141(12):1037-1039. PMID: 32202933.
      View in: PubMed
    26. Kim AJ, Xu N, Umeyama K, Hulin A, Ponny SR, Vagnozzi RJ, Green EA, Hanson P, McManus BM, Nagashima H, Yutzey KE. Deficiency of Circulating Monocytes Ameliorates the Progression of Myxomatous Valve Degeneration in Marfan Syndrome. Circulation. 2020 01 14; 141(2):132-146. PMID: 31928435.
      View in: PubMed
    27. Vagnozzi RJ, Maillet M, Sargent MA, Khalil H, Johansen AKZ, Schwanekamp JA, York AJ, Huang V, Nahrendorf M, Sadayappan S, Molkentin JD. An acute immune response underlies the benefit of cardiac stem?cell therapy. Nature. 2020 01; 577(7790):405-409. PMID: 31775156.
      View in: PubMed
    28. Vagnozzi RJ, Pfleger J, Sadayappan S. Basic Cardiovascular Sciences Scientific Sessions 2019: Integrative Approaches to Complex Cardiovascular Diseases. Circ Res. 2019 10 25; 125(10):924-931. PMID: 31647770.
      View in: PubMed
    29. Vagnozzi RJ, Johansen AKZ, Molkentin JD. CARdiac Immunotherapy: T Cells Engineered to Treat the Fibrotic Heart. Mol Ther. 2019 11 06; 27(11):1869-1871. PMID: 31585799.
      View in: PubMed
    30. Khalil H, Kanisicak O, Vagnozzi RJ, Johansen AK, Maliken BD, Prasad V, Boyer JG, Brody MJ, Schips T, Kilian KK, Correll RN, Kawasaki K, Nagata K, Molkentin JD. Cell-specific ablation of Hsp47 defines the collagen-producing cells in the injured heart JCI Insight. 2019 08 08; 4(15):e128722. PMID: 31393098.
      View in: PubMed
    31. Vagnozzi RJ, Sargent MA, Lin SJ, Palpant NJ, Murry CE, Molkentin JD. Genetic Lineage Tracing of Sca-1+ Cells Reveals Endothelial but Not Myogenic Contribution to the Murine Heart. Circulation. 2018 12 18; 138(25):2931-2939. PMID: 29991486.
      View in: PubMed
    32. Stremmel C, Schuchert R, Wagner F, Thaler R, Weinberger T, Pick R, Mass E, Ishikawa-Ankerhold HC, Margraf A, Hutter S, Vagnozzi R, Klapproth S, Frampton J, Yona S, Scheiermann C, Molkentin JD, Jeschke U, Moser M, Sperandio M, Massberg S, Geissmann F, Schulz C. Author Correction: Yolk sac macrophage progenitors traffic to the embryo during defined stages of development. Nat Commun. 2018 09 07; 9(1):3699. PMID: 30194428.
      View in: PubMed
    33. Vagnozzi RJ, Molkentin JD, Houser SR. New Myocyte Formation in the Adult Heart: Endogenous Sources and Therapeutic Implications. Circ Res. 2018 07 06; 123(2):159-176. PMID: 29976685.
      View in: PubMed
    34. Fu X, Khalil H, Kanisicak O, Boyer JG, Vagnozzi RJ, Maliken BD, Sargent MA, Prasad V, Valiente-Alandi I, Blaxall BC, Molkentin JD. Specialized fibroblast differentiated states underlie scar formation in the infarcted mouse heart. J Clin Invest. 2018 05 01; 128(5):2127-2143. PMID: 29664017.
      View in: PubMed
    35. van Berlo JH, Kanisicak O, Maillet M, Vagnozzi RJ, Karch J, Lin SJ, Middleton RC, Marb?n E, Molkentin JD. van Berlo et al. reply. Nature. 2018 03 21; 555(7697):E18. PMID: 29565361.
      View in: PubMed
    36. Stremmel C, Schuchert R, Wagner F, Thaler R, Weinberger T, Pick R, Mass E, Ishikawa-Ankerhold HC, Margraf A, Hutter S, Vagnozzi R, Klapproth S, Frampton J, Yona S, Scheiermann C, Molkentin JD, Jeschke U, Moser M, Sperandio M, Massberg S, Geissmann F, Schulz C. Yolk sac macrophage progenitors traffic to the embryo during defined stages of development. Nat Commun. 2018 01 08; 9(1):75. PMID: 29311541.
      View in: PubMed
    37. Kanisicak O, Vagnozzi RJ, Molkentin JD. Identity Crisis for Regenerative Cardiac cKit+ Cells. Circ Res. 2017 10 27; 121(10):1130-1132. PMID: 29074532.
      View in: PubMed
    38. Khalil H, Kanisicak O, Prasad V, Correll RN, Fu X, Schips T, Vagnozzi RJ, Liu R, Huynh T, Lee SJ, Karch J, Molkentin JD. Fibroblast-specific TGF-?-Smad2/3 signaling underlies cardiac fibrosis. J Clin Invest. 2017 Oct 02; 127(10):3770-3783. PMID: 28891814.
      View in: PubMed
    39. Mitani Y, Vagnozzi RJ, Millay DP. In vivo myomaker-mediated heterologous fusion and nuclear reprogramming. FASEB J. 2017 01; 31(1):400-411. PMID: 27825107.
      View in: PubMed
    40. Wallner M, Duran JM, Mohsin S, Troupes CD, Vanhoutte D, Borghetti G, Vagnozzi RJ, Gross P, Yu D, Trappanese DM, Kubo H, Toib A, Sharp TE, Harper SC, Volkert MA, Starosta T, Feldsott EA, Berretta RM, Wang T, Barbe MF, Molkentin JD, Houser SR. Acute Catecholamine Exposure Causes Reversible Myocyte Injury Without Cardiac Regeneration. Circ Res. 2016 Sep 16; 119(7):865-79. PMID: 27461939.
      View in: PubMed
    41. Liu R, van Berlo JH, York AJ, Vagnozzi RJ, Maillet M, Molkentin JD. DUSP8 Regulates Cardiac Ventricular Remodeling by Altering ERK1/2 Signaling. Circ Res. 2016 07 08; 119(2):249-60. PMID: 27225478.
      View in: PubMed
    42. Schwanekamp JA, Lorts A, Vagnozzi RJ, Vanhoutte D, Molkentin JD. Deletion of Periostin Protects Against Atherosclerosis in Mice by Altering Inflammation and Extracellular Matrix Remodeling. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2016 Jan; 36(1):60-8. PMID: 26564821.
      View in: PubMed
    43. Liu R, Correll RN, Davis J, Vagnozzi RJ, York AJ, Sargent MA, Nairn AC, Molkentin JD. Cardiac-specific deletion of protein phosphatase 1? promotes increased myofilament protein phosphorylation and contractile alterations. J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2015 Oct; 87:204-13. PMID: 26334248.
      View in: PubMed
    44. Kwong JQ, Lu X, Correll RN, Schwanekamp JA, Vagnozzi RJ, Sargent MA, York AJ, Zhang J, Bers DM, Molkentin JD. The Mitochondrial Calcium Uniporter Selectively Matches Metabolic Output to Acute Contractile Stress in the Heart. Cell Rep. 2015 Jul 07; 12(1):15-22. PMID: 26119742.
      View in: PubMed
    45. Ahmad F, Lal H, Zhou J, Vagnozzi RJ, Yu JE, Shang X, Woodgett JR, Gao E, Force T. Cardiomyocyte-specific deletion of Gsk3a mitigates post-myocardial infarction remodeling, contractile dysfunction, and heart failure. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2014 Aug 19; 64(7):696-706. PMID: 25125302.
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    46. Lal H, Ahmad F, Zhou J, Yu JE, Vagnozzi RJ, Guo Y, Yu D, Tsai EJ, Woodgett J, Gao E, Force T. Cardiac fibroblast glycogen synthase kinase-3? regulates ventricular remodeling and dysfunction in ischemic heart. Circulation. 2014 07 29; 130(5):419-30. PMID: 24899689.
      View in: PubMed
    47. van Berlo JH, Kanisicak O, Maillet M, Vagnozzi RJ, Karch J, Lin SC, Middleton RC, Marb?n E, Molkentin JD. c-kit+ cells minimally contribute cardiomyocytes to the heart. Nature. 2014 May 15; 509(7500):337-41. PMID: 24805242.
      View in: PubMed
    48. Duran JM, Makarewich CA, Trappanese D, Gross P, Husain S, Dunn J, Lal H, Sharp TE, Starosta T, Vagnozzi RJ, Berretta RM, Barbe M, Yu D, Gao E, Kubo H, Force T, Houser SR. Sorafenib cardiotoxicity increases mortality after myocardial infarction. Circ Res. 2014 May 23; 114(11):1700-1712. PMID: 24718482.
      View in: PubMed
    49. King-Smith C, Vagnozzi RJ, Fischer NE, Gannon P, Gunnam S. Orientation of actin filaments in teleost retinal pigment epithelial cells, and the effect of the lectin, Concanavalin A, on melanosome motility. Vis Neurosci. 2014 Jan; 31(1):1-10. PMID: 24801619.
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    50. Hoffman NE, Chandramoorthy HC, Shamugapriya S, Zhang X, Rajan S, Mallilankaraman K, Gandhirajan RK, Vagnozzi RJ, Ferrer LM, Sreekrishnanilayam K, Natarajaseenivasan K, Vallem S, Force T, Choi ET, Cheung JY, Madesh M. MICU1 motifs define mitochondrial calcium uniporter binding and activity. Cell Rep. 2013 Dec 26; 5(6):1576-1588. PMID: 24332854.
      View in: PubMed
    51. Vagnozzi RJ, Gatto GJ, Kallander LS, Hoffman NE, Mallilankaraman K, Ballard VL, Lawhorn BG, Stoy P, Philp J, Graves AP, Naito Y, Lepore JJ, Gao E, Madesh M, Force T. Inhibition of the cardiomyocyte-specific kinase TNNI3K limits oxidative stress, injury, and adverse remodeling in the ischemic heart. Sci Transl Med. 2013 Oct 16; 5(207):207ra141. PMID: 24132636.
      View in: PubMed
    52. Zhou J, Freeman TA, Ahmad F, Shang X, Mangano E, Gao E, Farber J, Wang Y, Ma XL, Woodgett J, Vagnozzi RJ, Lal H, Force T. GSK-3a is a central regulator of age-related pathologies in mice. J Clin Invest. 2013 Apr; 123(4):1821-32. PMID: 23549082.
      View in: PubMed
    53. Vagnozzi RJ, Hoffman NE, Elrod JW, Madesh M, Force T. Protein Kinase Signaling at the Crossroads of Myocyte Life and Death in Ischemic Heart Disease. Drug Discov Today Ther Strateg. 2012; 9(4):e173-e182. PMID: 24839450.
      View in: PubMed
    54. Lal H, Zhou J, Ahmad F, Zaka R, Vagnozzi RJ, Decaul M, Woodgett J, Gao E, Force T. Glycogen synthase kinase-3a limits ischemic injury, cardiac rupture, post-myocardial infarction remodeling and death. Circulation. 2012 Jan 03; 125(1):65-75. PMID: 22086876.
      View in: PubMed
    55. Elrod JW, Wong R, Mishra S, Vagnozzi RJ, Sakthievel B, Goonasekera SA, Karch J, Gabel S, Farber J, Force T, Brown JH, Murphy E, Molkentin JD. Cyclophilin D controls mitochondrial pore-dependent Ca(2+) exchange, metabolic flexibility, and propensity for heart failure in mice. J Clin Invest. 2010 Oct; 120(10):3680-7. PMID: 20890047.
      View in: PubMed
    56. Woulfe KC, Gao E, Lal H, Harris D, Fan Q, Vagnozzi R, DeCaul M, Shang X, Patel S, Woodgett JR, Force T, Zhou J. Glycogen synthase kinase-3beta regulates post-myocardial infarction remodeling and stress-induced cardiomyocyte proliferation in vivo. Circ Res. 2010 May 28; 106(10):1635-45. PMID: 20360256.
      View in: PubMed
    57. Kerkela R, Woulfe KC, Durand JB, Vagnozzi R, Kramer D, Chu TF, Beahm C, Chen MH, Force T. Sunitinib-induced cardiotoxicity is mediated by off-target inhibition of AMP-activated protein kinase. Clin Transl Sci. 2009 Feb; 2(1):15-25. PMID: 20376335.
      View in: PubMed
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