Versiti - VBRI Investigator Renren Wen Receives R01 Grant Renewal for HIT Research

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VBRI Investigator Renren Wen Receives R01 Grant Renewal for HIT Research

Wauwatosa, WI — September 02, 2025

Renren Wen, PhD, senior investigator at the Versiti Blood Research Institute (VBRI), has received a competitive renewal for her National Institute of Health (NIH) R01 grant. The grant renewal allows Wen and her lab to continue their work in humoral immune responses in heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT), where there is a critical knowledge gap.

Patients who take the blood thinner heparin can sometimes experience HIT, an immune system response that causes platelets to clot excessively in the presence of heparin. This rare drug reaction risks the creation of blood clots (thrombosis) and low platelet levels (thrombocytopenia).

“HIT is a serious complication in heparin-treated patients,” Wen says. “We have identified a previously unrecognized subset of platelet-activating antibodies that do not bind to PF4/heparin complexes and therefore escape detection by existing tests. This proposal aims to investigate the role of these newly identified antibodies in HIT, elucidate their mechanisms of formation, and develop strategies for their detection, ultimately advancing HIT diagnosis and management.”

The research happening in the Wen Lab will potentially reshape how HIT and related thrombotic disorders are studied and diagnosed, all of which will lead to better outcomes for patients. “This study should provide the foundation for more accurate diagnosis and ultimately guide safer management strategies for patients at risk of HIT,” says Wen. “It should also open new avenues for research into antibody specificity, immune tolerance, and diagnostic innovation.”

Securing this grant renewal was a true team effort. Integral to its success were co-investigators Demin Wang and Anand Padmanaban, research scientist Guoping Fu, post-doctoral student Daniel Villalobos, and graduate student Lu Zhou.

This $2.9 million-dollar, multiyear National Health, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) grant runs from May 2025 to May 2029. Grant renewals like these underscore the NIH’s confidence in the caliber of research at VBRI and fuels our mission to turn today’s science into tomorrow’s life-saving treatments.

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