Inspiring Scientific Curiosity and Discovery Series

Cardiovascular Development and Predisposition to Adult Heart Disease

The Yost laboratory seeks to understand the gene regulatory networks and developmental mechanisms that define the identity and position of cells in vertebrate embryos and to utilize this knowledge for the advancement of human medicine. This requires integration of model organism genetics with the discovery of novel disease-causing mutations in human genomes, and the Yost laboratory is recognized as a leader in understanding vertebrate left-right development and its contributions to complex congenital heart defects, which affect approximately thirty-five thousand births per year in the US.