Suttira “Joy” Intapad, PhD

Disease can be programmed by exposure to an adverse environment during early life. Dr. Intapad is interested in research related to the developmental programming of chronic diseases, especially cardiovascular disease, and how an improper environment during fetal development can result in long-lasting effects on an individual's health. She uses low birth weight (LBW) as an indicator of poor fetal growth which is a risk factor for hypertension. In her animal models, she induces placental insufficiency in pregnant females resulting in in utero intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) of the offspring which are consequently born with LBW. Numerous experimental models of developmental insults are established in the rat; yet, few mouse models are used. Dr. Intapad developed an IUGR model in the mouse. This novel mouse model of IUGR allows her to combine this technique with transgenic models for the testing of avant-garde hypotheses related to the developmental origins of disease. The goals of her research are to understand how developmentally-programmed chronic diseases can be prevented or predicted and to elucidate strategies that clinicians can use to improve the quality of life of individuals facing an increased risk for chronic disease that begun during their fetal life.