Assistant professor of biomedical engineering Renita Horton, Ph.D., has been awarded the Lupus Research Alliance’s (LRA) Diversity in Lupus Research (DLR) Career Development Award.
Lupus is a potentially debilitating autoimmune disease disproportionately affecting Black, Hispanic, Indigenous, and Asian and Pacific Islander people. Three years ago, the LRA introduced the DLR awards to “foster a diverse scientific community that mirrors the populations most impacted by lupus.”
“We are delighted to recognize the talented recipients of the 2024 LRA Diversity in Lupus Research Awards,” said Teodora Staeva, Ph.D., LRA Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer. “By supporting these outstanding individuals, we are not only broadening the diversity of our scientific community, but also paving the way for innovative approaches to drive advancements in lupus research.”
Horton was one of three 2024 awardees, each of whom received up to $600,000 disbursed over four years to support the establishment of a competitive research program. Her research proposal, “Investigating the role of SLE serum factors in neonatal lupus cardiac fibrosis”, aims to identify biomarkers and actionable therapeutic targets that may allow clinicians to treat or prevent the fibrosis associated with a condition called neonatal lupus.
Expectant mothers with certain lupus related autoantibodies (antibodies that mistakenly target the body’s own cells and tissues) are at a higher risk of having babies with congenital heart block - a serious heart condition. Horton’s innovative heart-on-a-chip model – for which she recently won a CAREER award – will be critical in helping to identify key factors that contribute to cardiac fibrosis (the formation of scar tissue) and heart block in newborns.
Awardees select professional mentors whose experiences and research foci allow them to offer key expertise.
“Dr. Chandra Mohan, an expert in the lupus field, serves as my primary mentor, and Dr. Todd Rosengart, cardiologist and clinician researcher with the Baylor College of Medicine, serves as my secondary mentor,” said Horton. “My mentorship team combines my research interests, lupus and the heart, and will support the continued development of my research program.”
“Supporting diverse perspectives in research is crucial, as the lived experiences of scientists enhance the relevance and impact of their work. Additionally, representation fosters trust and relatability, which can improve communication and understanding between researchers and individuals within the affected communities.
“When you look at backgrounds, women of color tend to have higher incidences or higher disease burdens than other groups, so I think mechanisms such as this [program] support the ability to study these issues and ask questions that have yet to be examined. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach. Being mindful of diversity when we’re designing experiments, when we’re asking questions – will really continue to move the needle in a positive direction,” she added.
The Lupus Research Alliance is the largest non-governmental, non-profit funder of lupus research worldwide.