Prof. Coral Murrant, Human Health and Nutritional Sciences, has received one of two $25,000 grants from the Preeclampsia Foundation. The awards provide initial funding for novel research pertaining to the causes, diagnosis and treatment of hypertensive disorders in pregnancy.
Murrant is working to understand the processes that determine blood flow control to the placenta and potentially identify an entirely new pathway for fetal-maternal communication. She intends to investigate the lack of appropriate communication pathways that link blood flow needs and its potential for inhibiting fetal development and intrauterine growth.
“Understanding how and why pregnancy and placental blood flow is successful in the healthy situation is critical to understanding when things go wrong,” she said.
The award will be presented in Seattle in November at the foundation’s annual benefit gala.