91ɫƵ

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Michael Widlansky, MD, MPH

Michael E. Widlansky, MD, MPH

Northwestern Mutual Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine and Pharmacology; Director of the Cardiovascular Center

Contact Information

Education

MD, University of Michigan, 1999

Research Experience

  • Aging
  • Coronary Artery Disease
  • Diabetes Complications
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2
  • endothelial function
  • Endothelium-Dependent Relaxing Factors
  • Exercise
  • Hypertension
  • Hypoglycemia
  • Nitric Oxide

Clinical Expertise

  • Coronary Artery Disease
  • Echocardiography

Methodologies and Techniques

  • arterial tonometry
  • digital pulse amplitude tonometry
  • flow mediate dilation
  • Microbubbles
  • Microscopy, Video
  • Plethysmography
  • Ultrasonography

Leadership Positions

  • Associate Fellowship Director, Cardiovascular Diseases
  • Chair, Human Research Affairs Committee
  • Member, Continuing Medical Education Committee
  • Member, Reserach Affairs Committee
  • Research Director, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine

91ɫƵ Program / Core Facilities

  • Human Vascular Translational Reserach Core

Research Interests

The vascular endothelium, once thought to be a thin layer of quiescent cells present only to allow smooth, laminar blood flow has discovered to be a central regulator of vascular homeostasis. Both traditional and novel cardiovascular risk factors have been shown to induce the endothelium to take on a phenotype characterized by inflammation, pro-thrombotic stimuli, and vasoconstriction. This state of endothelial “dysfunction” has been shown to precede the development of atherosclerosis and portend cardiovascular events in both those with and without clinically evident cardiovascular disease. Endothelium-derived nitric oxide (EDNO) has been shown to be a central paracrine hormone in the maintenance of normal endothelial function, and a central characteristic of endothelial dysfunction is a reduction in bioavailable EDNO. Measuring EDNO bioavailability in larger conduit vessels and in the microvasculature in vivo can be accomplished by multiple modalities, including high-resolution vascular ultrasound and venous plethysmography. We employ these methodologies to investigate the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying the development of endothelial dysfunction in humans with a variety of disease states, including coronary artery disease and diabetes. Currently, we are investigating the role of disturbances in mitochondrial homeostasis in the modulation of vascular endothelial function in humans with Type II Diabetes. Many of our studies are small, clinical studies that apply different interventions to humans to assess their effects on vascular endothelial function, based on basic and animal work suggesting potential mechanisms for such a difference. Current protocols along this line include investigating the differential effects on vascular function of metformin and glipizide in Type II Diabetics. Our human vascular research laboratory has been formed to foster collaboration with investigators from other disciplines interested in the impact of vascular function on disease states relevant to their fields of interest. Current collaborative efforts include work with investigators from disciplines including Orthopedics, Dermatology, Geriatrics, Pediatric Endocrinology, and Pediatric Cardiology.

Publications

  • (Wolfgram DF, Grassl I, Seigworth C, Widlansky ME, Gao Y.) Hemodial Int. 2025 Mar 28 PMID: 40155364 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-105001140356 03/29/2025

  • (Ray A, Yang C, Stelloh C, Tutaj M, Liu P, Liu Y, Qiu Q, Auer PL, Lin CW, Widlansky ME, Geurts AM, Cowley AW Jr, Liang M, Kwitek AE, Greene AS, Rao S.) Hypertension. 2025 Mar;82(3):476-488 PMID: 39723540 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85213707759 12/26/2024

  • (He L, Liu Y, Widlansky ME, Kriegel AJ, Qiu Q, Liang M.) Hypertension. 2025 Feb;82(2):181-184 PMID: 39633557 PMCID: PMC11893092 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85211732398 12/05/2024

  • (Palathinkara M, Aljadah M, Thorgerson A, Dawson AZ, Widlansky ME.) Front Nutr. 2025;12:1495633 PMID: 40093880 PMCID: PMC11906339 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-86000721426 03/17/2025

  • (Liu Y, Pandey R, Qiu Q, Liu P, Xue H, Wang J, Therani B, Ying R, Usa K, Grzybowski M, Yang C, Mishra MK, Greene AS, Cowley AW Jr, Rao S, Geurts AM, Widlansky ME, Liang M.) bioRxiv. 2024 Oct 14 PMID: 39463975 PMCID: PMC11507733 10/28/2024

  • (Aljadah M, Khan N, Beyer AM, Chen Y, Blanker A, Widlansky ME.) JACC Adv. 2024 Aug;3(8):101070 PMID: 39055276 PMCID: PMC11269277 07/26/2024

  • (Mahoney SA, VanDongen NS, Greenberg NT, Venkatasubramanian R, Rossman MJ, Widlansky ME, Brunt VE, Bernaldo de Quirós Y, Seals DR, Clayton ZS.) Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2024 May 01;326(5):H1279-H1290 PMID: 38517225 PMCID: PMC11380963 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85191614683 03/22/2024

  • (Pandey R, Roberts ML, Wang J, Pereckas M, Jensen D, Greene AS, Widlansky ME, Liang M.) Lab Invest. 2024 May;104(5):102036 PMID: 38408704 PMCID: PMC11098693 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85189472781 02/27/2024

  • (Aljadah M, Khan N, Beyer AM, Chen Y, Blanker A, Widlansky ME.) JACC: Advances. August 2024;3(8) SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85197318304 08/01/2024

  • (Longtine AG, Greenberg NT, Gonzalez A, Lindquist A, VanDongen NS, Mahoney SA, Rahman G, Clayton ZS, Ziemba BP, Ludwig KR, Widlansky ME, Knight R, Seals DR, Brunt VE.) Aging Biol. 2024;2 PMID: 39897133 PMCID: PMC11785404 01/01/2024

  • (Widlansky ME, Liu Y, Tumusiime S, Hofeld B, Khan N, Aljadah M, Wang J, Anger A, Qiu Q, Therani B, Liu P, Liang M.) Circ Res. 2023 Sep;133(6):532-534 PMID: 37539553 PMCID: PMC10467803 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85169502007 08/04/2023

  • (Lamberg M, Devine A, Jewulski J, Smith A, Garster N, Sharma A, Mason PJ, Lewandowski D, Widlansky M, Mohananey D.) CASE (Phila). 2023 May;7(5):189-196 PMID: 37325463 PMCID: PMC10264206 06/16/2023