Heyu Ni

My laboratory currently investigates the role(s) of adhesion molecules (in particular the beta3 integrin and GPIb alpha complexes) involved in clot formation as well as their implications for hemostasis (including bleeding disorders) and thrombotic diseases (ie. heart attack and stroke). The laboratory also studies allo- and autoimmune diseases related to bleeding disorders such as immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) and fetal and neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenic purpura (FNAIT). These studies have been well funded by both internal and external granting agencies including Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada (HSFC), Canadian Blood Services (CBS), Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), and National Institutes of Health (NIH, USA), etc. We are currently funded by 3 CIHR grants and several other grants from HSFC and NIH etc.

Platelet physiology and thrombosis: thrombotic diseases such as heart attack and stroke are the leading causes of mortality and mobility worldwide. We established an intravital microscopy thrombosis model at Harvard to study thrombus formation in real time in live mice. Through direct monitoring of platelet adhesion and aggregation in vivo, we were the first to observe that platelet aggregation and thrombus formation still occur in mice lacking both von Willebrand factor (VWF) and fibrinogen (Fg). This surprising discovery challenged the established theory of thrombosis that required VWF and Fg for thrombus formation and suggested that other unidentified molecule(s) may also be involved in thrombosis and hemostasis and may provide novel targets for anti-thrombotic therapies. My team is in the process of identifying these mystery molecules at St. Michael’s Hospital using several state-of-the-art techniques such as proteomics and confocal intravital microscopy.

Platelet immunology and maternal immune response to fetal antigens: my laboratory recently published several important papers in investigation: 1) How ITP mediated by anti-beta3 integrin and anti-GPIb antibodies differ, finding that these two antibody specificities may respond to therapy differently. This has important implications for human ITP and potential screening of patients in order to successfully treat this disease. 2) The first animal model of FNAIT, characterizing the disease and its response to intravenous immunoglobulin G (IVIG) therapy. Currently, the laboratory is studying the molecular and cellular basis for ITP, the maternal immune responses to fetal platelet antigens and the roles of anti-angiogenesis and apoptosis in the patho-progression of FNAIT.

Scientific Memberships:

• International Society of Thrombosis and Hemostasis

• American Society of Hematology

• American Association of Blood Banks

• Canadian Society of Atherosclerosis,

• Thrombosis and Vascular Biology

• Canadian Society of Transfusion Medicine

Committee Membership & Grant Reviewer:

• Canadian Institutes of Health Research

• Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada

• Canada Foundation for Innovation

• Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada

• The Kidney Foundation of Canada

• China (NSFC)-Canada (CIHR) Joint Health Research Initiative – Grants Program

• Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research

• Landsteiner Foundation for Blood Transfusion Research

• National Institutes of Health

• Medical Research Council, United Kingdom

Award Reviewer:

• Canadian Institutes of Health Research Travel Award

• Canadian Blood Services Graduate Fellowship

• Ontario Graduate Scholarships in Science and Technology

• Heart and Stroke/ Richard Lewar Centre of Excellence Fellowship, University of Toronto

• Department of Laboratory Medicine and

• Pathobiology Graduate Award, University of Toronto

• St. Michael’s Hospital graduate scholarship

Journal Reviewer:

• Blood

• Circulation

• Circulation Research

• Journal of Clinical Investigation

• Journal of Biological Chemistry

• Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis

• Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology

• Thrombosis and Haemostasis

• Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences

• Journal of Leukocyte Biology

• Thrombosis and Hemostasis

• Haematologica

• Hematology

• Transfusion

• Clinical Immunology

• Experimental Hematology

• European Journal of Hematology

• Journal of Natural Products

• British Journal of Haematology

• Current Medicinal Chemistry

• Apoptosis

• Cardiovascular Pathology

• Platelets

Other Appointments & Affiliations

• Scientist, Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael’s Hospital
• Professor, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto
• Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto
• Professor, Department of Physiology, University of Toronto
• Scientist, Canadian Blood Services Centre for Innovation Platform
• Director for Hematology, Cancer and Immunological Diseases