The Emory Center for Health in Aging (ECHA) projects, designed to spark new collaborations and harness the creative potential of the Emory community, are a key tenant of the center's mission to promote well-being among older adults. The selected projects represent multiple domains of innovation in aging across Emory.
"This year's pilot awardees represent a range of translational research, all aimed at improving health as we age. Their work includes exploring how aging mitochondria impact muscle function, examining the well-being of older adults and their families following serious illness, and investigating the potential of meditation to influence gene expression," says Camille Vaughan, MD, director of the Center for Health in Aging.
The 2025 pilot projects are:
"Patient- and family-reported outcomes post-critical illness among older adults admitted to the Intensive Care Unit: a pilot study," awarded to Rachel A. Hadler, MD
Rachel A. Hadler
This pilot will assess the feasibility of capturing the long-term health outcomes of older adults and families following ICU admission.
Hadler, an assistant professor at Emory's School of Medicine, is an anesthesiologist, intensivist, palliative care physician, and researcher. Her current research assesses and identifies interventions in the communication and decision-making processes leading to aggressive interventions in critically and terminally ill patients. This mainly occurs through evaluations of care delivery preceding and during critical illness, and through prospective use of the Patient Dignity Inventory among critically ill patients.
"A novel chemical strategy to restore mitochondrial quality in senescent muscle cells," awarded to Anupam Patgiri, PhD
Anupam Patgiri
This proposal will explore a novel pharmacological intervention to potentially restore muscle mass loss in aging.
Dr. Patgiri is an assistant professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology at Emory University School of Medicine. His lab is developing novel approaches to study how defective mitochondria— the organelle responsible for converting food into energy-- impact cellular physiology in disease, as well as the restoration of mitochondrial homeostasis, or the quality and quantity of these organelles.
The proposed project will help develop chemical tools to restore cell function and introduce first-in-class molecules to restore muscle mass in aging.
"Reversing Immune Dysfunction Through Mindfulness - The Effects of Cognitively Based Compassion Training on Gene Expression in People with HIV," awarded to Boghuma Titanji, MD, PhD
Boghuma Titanji
This study will unravel the mechanisms by which Cognitively-Based Compassion Training impacts the alleviation of chronic inflammation, immune dysfunction and the downstream consequences for this patient population.
Titanji is an assistant professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Emory University. She is strongly committed to advancing translational and clinical research in HIV and emerging infections, global health equity, and the communication of science education. Her clinical expertise centers on the management of general infectious diseases and chronic HIV infection, and its associated comorbidities..
