Cardiovascular disease remains the number one cause of death and disability in the developed world. Significant research effort has focused on the underlying mechanisms of ischemic injury, with limited translation to patient health. The long term goal of these studies is to understand the molecular basis of ischemic injury to the myocardium. We are using a combined approach of proteomics, molecular genetics, microscopy and animal/cell physiology to study various inter-related aspects of ischemia/reperfusion injury. The objective of these integrated studies is to reveal novel insights for prevention of heart attack-induced cell death. These studies are in collaboration with Peipei Ping, Jim Weiss, Yibin Wang and Robb MacLellan at UCLA.