Marisa Schmidt Bazzi, Ph.D.
Stanford University
Seminar Information
Cardiovascular diseases such as ascending thoracic aortic aneurysms (ATAA) and the clinical challenges of congenital heart defects call for a deeper understanding of the biomechanical and biological mechanisms underlying vascular growth and remodeling (G&R). This presentation introduces a multiscale, multiphysics modeling framework that combines computational simulations, medical imaging, and in vivo data to investigate biofluidic and geometric biomarkers linked to ATAA progression in genetically modified mouse models. Using fluid-solid interaction (FSI) simulations and personalized hemodynamics, the work quantifies the influence of shear stress, pressure, and wall structure on vascular adaptation and disease. This framework is further extended to improve tissue-engineered vascular graft (TEVG) design through subject-specific G&R modeling in a juvenile ovine model, evaluating how scaffold microstructure and degradation affect long-term outcomes. Altogether, these computational tools demonstrate the power of simulation to uncover mechanisms of vascular remodeling and inform the design of optimized patient-specific care.
Marisa Bazzi holds a Ph.D. in Materials Science from the University of Minnesota and is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford University. Her research focuses on leveraging computational simulations and mathematical modeling to improve the design and performance of tissue-engineered vascular grafts (TEVGs). Her work aims to advance patient-specific solutions for cardiovascular disease and congenital heart defects by integrating biomechanics, fluid dynamics, and biological data.