Two members of the UNC Blood Research Center, Rafal Pawlinski PhD and Nigel Key MD, both Professors in the Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology, have been awarded a $2.8 million, 4-year RO1 grant from the NIH-NHLBI to investigate the mechanism of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in sickle cell disease (SCD).
Dr. Rafal Pawlinski and Dr. Nigel Key
Recent epidemiologic data have established that individuals with SCD are at significantly increased risk of VTE, with an unusually high incidence of pulmonary emboli. The investigators will investigate whether unique properties of red blood cells (RBCs) in SCD contribute to the formation of unstable venous clots. More broadly, these studies are expected to contribute new insights into the role of cellular components in VTE.