Ritu Dave

Program: Molecular Genetics and Genomics

Current advisor: Antonina Frolova, MD, PhD

Undergraduate university: Washington University, 2022

Enrollment year: 2023

Research summary
Regulation of myometrial contractility during labor

The human myometrium contracts during labor to facilitate delivery and after labor to prevent excessive bleeding. In instances where the myometrium’s contractions are absent or irregular, patients can have complications in delivery necessitating a caesarean section or experience post-partum hemorrhage. Because of these risks, there is a need to better understand regulators of myometrial contractility. I am investigating how aging impacts the metabolic phenotype of the myometrium, including mitochondrial respiration and muscle contractility. Additionally, I am investigating regulators of the oxytocin receptor, a key contractility associated protein whose signaling at term is critical for labor progression.

Graduate publications