Anastasia Gkousioudi receives Societal Impact Award
Anastasia Gkousioudi receives the College of Engineering Societal Impact Award for her work in the field of vascular mechanics and mechanobiology
Cardiovascular risk factors, such as age, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, and their co-occurrence referred to as metabolic syndrome, affect millions of people worldwide by directly disrupting the arterial extracellular matrix and cells, and consequently the biomechanical function of arteries. Metabolic syndrome increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Arteries gradually stiffen with aging; however, it can be worsened by the presence of conditions associated with metabolic syndrome.
Advised by Yanhang Katherine Zhang, Anastasia’s Ph.D. thesis research made important contributions to the field of vascular mechanics and mechanobiology, earning her this Societal Impact Award. Her work focused on:
1) understanding the compromised biomechanical function of elastic arteries under aging, hypertension, and metabolic syndrome,
2) investigating microstructural mechanisms that lead to the compromised arterial function in aging, and
3) exploring therapeutic effects of renal denervation on reversing arterial stiffening in hypertension.
Throughout her research, Anastasia has developed novel experimental-modeling research approaches that integrate biomechanical characterization, structure-based computational models, and advanced optical imaging, segmentation, and quantification. When asked about her thoughts on receiving the award, Anastasia states,
Receiving this award is a wonderful validation of the hard work and dedication that has gone into our projects. I hope that our work encourages others in the field to pursue projects with a strong societal focus.”
Currently Anastasia is working in Professor Zhang’s lab and she plans to continue her work in biomechanics. She has always been interested in the practical application of her research and skills and is excited about the opportunities that both academia and industry present. Anastasia says,
My goal is to follow a career path that allows me to bring impactful medical technologies to life.”