BME Grad Student is Finalist in UA Grad Slam

Biomedical engineering master's student Grace Heffernon landed as a finalist in Grad Slam 2022, a campuswide competition for the best presentation of a research or creative project. In her presentation, “Shining Light on Heart Disease,” Heffernon discussed the unknowns about genetic cardiomyopathy, a condition in which the heart muscle becomes thick and abnormally shaped.

Her research helps define the structure of one of the involved proteins: troponin T. To better understand the protein, Heffernon uses fluorescence resonance energy transfer to determine the distance between two proteins. 

"Knowing the distance that troponin T is to other proteins in a healthy heart helps us piece together muscle structure, and once we know this, we can then identify where mutations change the structure, and then make medications to target these areas," Heffernon said.

For her presentation, Heffernon won a $750 finalist award from Arizona Humanities.