Professor Hai-Ling Margaret Cheng Receives CIHR Project Grant to Advance Heart Disease Imaging Research

Professor Hai-Ling Margaret Cheng of the University of Toronto's Institute of Biomedical Engineering (BME) has been awarded a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Spring 2026 Project Grant to support research aimed at improving the understanding and treatment of heart disease.

All award winners can be found here: https://cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/54787.html.

The five-year project, Breaking the Inflammation-Remodeling Axis in Heart Disease using Nitric Oxide-Sensitive MRI, has received $1,086,300 in CIHR funding. Cheng is the principal investigator, working with co-investigators Dr. Slava Epelman and Dr. Herman Yeger.

Heart disease remains a leading cause of illness and death worldwide, yet many of the molecular changes that drive disease progression cannot be detected with current clinical imaging tools. The research team has developed a novel MRI contrast agent that responds to nitric oxide (NO), a signaling molecule involved in regulating blood flow, inflammation, tissue repair, and heart function.

Using this new imaging approach, the researchers aim to visualize NO activity directly in the living heart and better understand how NO signaling changes across different forms of heart disease and over time. The work could help explain why some nitric oxide-targeted therapies have succeeded while others have not, and support the development of more precise treatment strategies.

Funded through CIHR's Project Grant program, which supports health research projects and ideas with the potential to advance knowledge, health outcomes, and the Canadian health system, the award recognizes the scientific merit and potential impact of Cheng's research.