OTTAWA, October 17, 2025 — Four investigators from the Ottawa Heart Institute have been awarded funding through the Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada’s Grant-in-Aid Program as part of the 2025/26 (Fall 2024) competition.
The Grant-in-Aid Program provides operating support for important, innovative research in heart disease and stroke. This year’s funded projects led by researchers at the Heart Institute span topics including bereavement, genetic pathways in cardiovascular development, adverse remodelling – a process wherein the heart's size, shape, and function change over time in response to cardiac injury or increased load – and the impact of infection-induced inflammation on heart disease.
Recognized internationally for its contributions to cardiovascular research and care, the Ottawa Heart Institute continues to advance discovery and innovation.
Congratulations to all our researchers!
Karen Bouchard
- Principal investigator: Karen Bouchard, PhD
- Project: Complicated Grief Among Caregivers Bereaved from Heart Failure: A pilot and feasibility prospective cohort study
- Funding: $293,000 over three years
Dr. Bouchard’s work will assess the feasibility of a larger study investigating complicated grief among caregivers who have lost someone to heart failure. The goal is to better understand how often this form of grief occurs, how it affects caregivers’ health, and how future support systems can be improved.
Kyoung-Han Kim
- Principal investigator: Kyoung-Han Kim, PhD
- Project: The Combinatorial Role of Iroquois Homeobox Transcription Factors in Cardiovascular Neurocristopathy
- Funding: $389,220 over four years
Dr. Kim’s research explores how specific genetic signals guide neural crest cells, which are early cells in the embryo that help form numerous structures during development, including parts of the heart. By understanding how these cells move and shape the heart, the study aims to uncover the origins of congenital heart defects and support future advances in diagnosis and treatment.
Wenbin Liang
- Principal investigator: Wenbin Liang, MD, PhD
- Project: Role of GABA Type A Receptors in Cardiac Remodelling after Myocardial Infarction
- Funding: $398,056 over four years
Dr. Liang’s research investigates how a protein best known for its role in the brain may also influence heart damage and recovery after a heart attack. By studying how this protein affects heart cell death and irregular heart rhythms, the project aims to uncover new ways to prevent heart failure and improve long-term outcomes for patients.
Katey Rayner
- Principal investigator: Katey Rayner, PhD
- Project: Pneumonia-Induced Vascular Inflammation & Atherosclerosis
- Funding: $390,020 over four years
Dr. Rayner’s research explores how pneumonia can increase the risk of heart disease by causing inflammation that speeds up the buildup of plaque in the arteries. By studying this process in mice and in patients who have recovered from pneumonia, the project aims to uncover why pneumonia raises heart attack risk and identify new ways to prevent heart disease in survivors.
Learn more about Heart & Stroke research programs, including the Grant-in-Aid Program.
To arrange interviews with any of the funded researchers listed above, please contact the media liaison below.
Media contact
Leigh B. Morris
Communications Officer
University of Ottawa Heart Institute
613-316-6409 (cell)
lmorris@ottawaheart.ca