Ramana Vaka

Ramana Vaka

Assistant Lecturer

9-70-A, Medical Sciences Building
ramanavaka@ualberta.ca 

Education:

PhD - Experimental Therapeutics and Pharmacology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, 2019

Teaching: 

PMCOL 200: Drugs- An Introduction to Pharmacology
PMCOL 343: Scientific Basis of Pharmacology: Part I
PMCOL 344: Scientific Basis of Pharmacology: Part II
PMCOL 337: Experimental Procedures in Pharmacology
PMCOL 450: Diabetes and Its Pharmacotherapy
PMCOL 425: Problem Solving in Pharmacology and Therapeutics

Research Interests: Heart failure, Hypertension, Mitochondria, Extracellular Vesicles, Preeclampsia

Publications: 

Schmidt MA, Abuetabh Y, Naganuma M, Vaka R, Zolondek MCP, Levasseur JL, Morales-Llamas DY, El-Ghiaty MA, Braun S, Sahid D, Khan L, Kwan E, Roth DK, Ferdaoussi M, Fahlman R, Dyck JRB. Ketone Therapy Prevents Semaglutide-induced Loss of Cardiac Mass. Eur J Prev Cardiol. 2025 Sep 30;. doi: 10.1093/eurjpc/zwaf605. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 41026893.

 

Parent S, Amant JS, Remortel SV, Kahn S, Vaka R, Courtman D, Stewart DJ, Davis DR. Atrial Fibrosis and Inflammation in Postoperative Atrial Fibrillation: Comparative Effects of Amiodarone, Colchicine, or Exosomes. JACC Clin Electrophysiol. 2024 Jun;10(6):1037-1049. doi: 10.1016/j.jacep.2024.02.019. Epub 2024 Apr 17. PubMed PMID: 38639701.

 

Parent S, Vaka R, St Amant J, Kahn S, Van Remortel S, Bi C, Courtman D, Stewart DJ, Davis DR. Inactivation of the NLRP3 inflammasome mediates exosome-based prevention of atrial fibrillation. Theranostics. 2024;14(2):608-621. doi: 10.7150/thno.89520. eCollection 2024. PubMed PMID: 38169629; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10758048.

 

Parent S, Vaka R, Risha Y, Ngo C, Kanda P, Nattel S, Khan S, Courtman D, Stewart DJ, Davis DR. Prevention of atrial fibrillation after open-chest surgery with extracellular vesicle therapy. JCI Insight. 2023 Jun 29;8(15). doi: 10.1172/jci.insight.163297. PubMed PMID: 37384420; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10481795.

 

Vaka R, Parent S, Risha Y, Khan S, Courtman D, Stewart DJ, Davis DR. Extracellular vesicle microRNA and protein cargo profiling in three clinical-grade stem cell products reveals key functional pathways. Mol Ther Nucleic Acids. 2023 Jun 13;32:80-93. doi: 10.1016/j.omtn.2023.03.001. eCollection 2023 Jun 13. PubMed PMID: 36969553; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10034570.

 

Vaka R, Remortel S, Ly V, Davis D. Extracellular vesicle therapy for non-ischemic heart failure: A systematic review of preclinical studies. Extracellular Vesicle. 2022 December; 1:100009-. doi: 10.1016/j.vesic.2022.100009.

 

Vaka R, Deer E, LaMarca B. Is Mitochondrial Oxidative Stress a Viable Therapeutic Target in Preeclampsia?. Antioxidants (Basel). 2022 Jan 22;11(2). doi: 10.3390/antiox11020210. Review. PubMed PMID: 35204094; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8868187.

 

Vaka R, Khan S, Ye B, Risha Y, Parent S, Courtman D, Stewart DJ, Davis DR. Direct comparison of different therapeutic cell types susceptibility to inflammatory cytokines associated with COVID-19 acute lung injury. Stem Cell Res Ther. 2022 Jan 15;13(1):20. doi: 10.1186/s13287-021-02699-7. PubMed PMID: 35033181; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8760881.

 

Vaka R, Deer E, Cunningham M, McMaster KM, Wallace K, Cornelius DC, Amaral LM, LaMarca B. Characterization of Mitochondrial Bioenergetics in Preeclampsia. J Clin Med. 2021 Oct 29;10(21). doi: 10.3390/jcm10215063. PubMed PMID: 34768583; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8584662.

 

Vaka R, Davis DR. State-of-play for cellular therapies in cardiac repair and regeneration. Stem Cells. 2021 Dec;39(12):1579-1588. doi: 10.1002/stem.3446. Epub 2021 Aug 27. Review. PubMed PMID: 34448513; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC9290630.

 

Jayaram A, Deer E, Amaral LM, Campbell N, Vaka VR, Cunningham M, Ibrahim T, Cornelius DC, LaMarca BB. The role of tumor necrosis factor in triggering activation of natural killer cell, multi-organ mitochondrial dysfunction and hypertension during pregnancy. Pregnancy Hypertens. 2021 Jun;24:65-72. doi: 10.1016/j.preghy.2021.02.006. Epub 2021 Feb 16. PubMed PMID: 33677421; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8681863.

 

Cunningham MW Jr, Amaral LM, Campbell NE, Cornelius DC, Ibrahim T, Vaka VR, LaMarca B. Investigation of interleukin-2-mediated changes in blood pressure, fetal growth restriction, and innate immune activation in normal pregnant rats and in a preclinical rat model of preeclampsia. Biol Sex Differ. 2021 Jan 6;12(1):4. doi: 10.1186/s13293-020-00345-0. PubMed PMID: 33407826; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7789596.

 

Deer E, Reeve KE, Amaral L, Vaka VR, Franks M, Campbell N, Fitzgerald S, Herrock O, Ibrahim T, Cornelius D, LaMarca B. CD4+ T cells cause renal and placental mitochondrial oxidative stress as mechanisms of hypertension in response to placental ischemia. Am J Physiol Renal Physiol. 2021 Jan 1;320(1):F47-F54. doi: 10.1152/ajprenal.00398.2020. Epub 2020 Nov 16. PubMed PMID: 33196321; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7847053.

 

Deer E, Vaka VR, McMaster KM, Wallace K, Cornelius DC, Amaral LM, Cunningham MW, LaMarca B. Vascular endothelial mitochondrial oxidative stress in response to preeclampsia: a role for angiotension II type 1 autoantibodies. Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM. 2021 Jan;3(1):100275. doi: 10.1016/j.ajogmf.2020.100275. Epub 2020 Oct 27. PubMed PMID: 33451592; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8092846.

 

Amaral LM, Cottrell JN, Comley KM, Cunningham MW Jr, Witcher A, Vaka VR, Ibrahim T, LaMarca B. 17-Hydroxyprogesterone caproate improves hypertension and renal endothelin-1 in response to sFlt-1 induced hypertension in pregnant rats. Pregnancy Hypertens. 2020 Oct;22:151-155. doi: 10.1016/j.preghy.2020.09.002. Epub 2020 Sep 11. PubMed PMID: 32980622; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10278054.

 

Cunningham MW, Jayaram A, Deer E, Amaral LM, Vaka VR, Ibrahim T, Cornelius DC, LaMarca B. Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) blockade improves natural killer cell (NK) activation, hypertension, and mitochondrial oxidative stress in a preclinical rat model of preeclampsia. Hypertens Pregnancy. 2020 Nov;39(4):399-404. doi: 10.1080/10641955.2020.1793999. Epub 2020 Jul 10. PubMed PMID: 32646252; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7669709.

 

Vaka VR, Cunningham MW, Deer E, Franks M, Ibrahim T, Amaral LM, Usry N, Cornelius DC, Dechend R, Wallukat G, LaMarca BD. Blockade of endogenous angiotensin II type I receptor agonistic autoantibody activity improves mitochondrial reactive oxygen species and hypertension in a rat model of preeclampsia. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2020 Feb 1;318(2):R256-R262. doi: 10.1152/ajpregu.00179.2019. Epub 2019 Nov 13. PubMed PMID: 31721604; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7052605.

 

Vaka VR, McMaster KM, Cornelius DC, Ibrahim T, Jayaram A, Usry N, Cunningham MW Jr, Amaral LM, LaMarca B. Natural killer cells contribute to mitochondrial dysfunction in response to placental ischemia in reduced uterine perfusion pressure rats. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2019 May 1;316(5):R441-R447. doi: 10.1152/ajpregu.00279.2018. Epub 2019 Feb 27. PubMed PMID: 30811248; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6589603.

 

Cottrell JN, Amaral LM, Harmon A, Cornelius DC, Cunningham MW Jr, Vaka VR, Ibrahim T, Herse F, Wallukat G, Dechend R, LaMarca B. Interleukin-4 supplementation improves the pathophysiology of hypertension in response to placental ischemia in RUPP rats. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2019 Feb 1;316(2):R165-R171. doi: 10.1152/ajpregu.00167.2018. Epub 2019 Jan 9. PubMed PMID: 30624978; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6397356.

 

Cunningham MW Jr, Vaka VR, McMaster K, Ibrahim T, Cornelius DC, Amaral L, Campbell N, Wallukat G, McDuffy S, Usry N, Dechend R, LaMarca B. Renal natural killer cell activation and mitochondrial oxidative stress; new mechanisms in AT1-AA mediated hypertensive pregnancy. Pregnancy Hypertens. 2019 Jan;15:72-77. doi: 10.1016/j.preghy.2018.11.004. Epub 2018 Nov 30. PubMed PMID: 30825931; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6596414.

 

Vaka VR, McMaster KM, Cunningham MW Jr, Ibrahim T, Hazlewood R, Usry N, Cornelius DC, Amaral LM, LaMarca B. Role of Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Reactive Oxygen Species in Mediating Hypertension in the Reduced Uterine Perfusion Pressure Rat Model of Preeclampsia. Hypertension. 2018 Sep;72(3):703-711. doi: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.118.11290. PubMed PMID: 30012871; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6394841.

 

Cunningham MW Jr, Castillo J, Ibrahim T, Cornelius DC, Campbell N, Amaral L, Vaka VR, Usry N, Williams JM, LaMarca B. AT1-AA (Angiotensin II Type 1 Receptor Agonistic Autoantibody) Blockade Prevents Preeclamptic Symptoms in Placental Ischemic Rats. Hypertension. 2018 May;71(5):886-893. doi: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.117.10681. Epub 2018 Mar 19. PubMed PMID: 29555668; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5903585.

 

Amaral LM, Faulkner JL, Elfarra J, Cornelius DC, Cunningham MW, Ibrahim T, Vaka VR, McKenzie J, LaMarca B. Continued Investigation Into 17-OHPC: Results From the Preclinical RUPP Rat Model of Preeclampsia. Hypertension. 2017 Dec;70(6):1250-1255. doi: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.117.09969. Epub 2017 Oct 30. PubMed PMID: 29084881; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5901972.

 

Santiago-Font JA, Amaral LM, Faulkner J, Ibrahim T, Vaka VR, Cunningham MW, LaMarca B. Serelaxin improves the pathophysiology of placental ischemia in the reduced uterine perfusion pressure rat model of preeclampsia. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2016 Dec 1;311(6):R1158-R1163. doi: 10.1152/ajpregu.00192.2016. Epub 2016 Sep 14. PubMed PMID: 27629886; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5256981.

 

Zeng H, Vaka VR, He X, Booz GW, Chen JX. High-fat diet induces cardiac remodelling and dysfunction: assessment of the role played by SIRT3 loss. J Cell Mol Med. 2015 Aug;19(8):1847-56. doi: 10.1111/jcmm.12556. Epub 2015 Mar 17. PubMed PMID: 25782072; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4549035.