Emma Wabel Receives AHA Grant to Study Chemical’s Link to Obesity, Hypertension
By Chuck Carlson
There is a protein in the blood that Emma Wabel believes may be the key that unlocks the decades-long mystery of why obesity and high blood pressure seem to go hand in hand.
And the American Heart Association is providing the third-year Pharmacology & Toxicology student a grant to pursue her theory. It’s a protein called chemerin, which is found in higher numbers in obese people, and which can constrict the blood vessels, leading to hypertension. Wabel, with a major assist from her mentor, Professor Stephanie Watts, has focused on chemerin as the culprit and the AHA is intrigued enough with her thesis to provide her the two-year grant.
“It’s a cool deal,” she said. “I’m very happy about it.”
Wabel’s thesis proposal on the research that was presented to the AHA, Watts said, was “off the charts,” adding, “Emma is the right person to test this theory.”
Not bad for a student who, Wabel admits, wasn’t even sure what she wanted to do in terms of gaining a doctoral degree. She earned her undergraduate degree at Hope College in 2021 with majors in biology (where her studied on cancer cells) and philosophy. Her love of science and research steered her to Michigan State to seek an advanced degree.
“I knew post undergrad I probably had to have some sort of advanced degree and so I figured why not try it,” she said. “And I knew I wanted to jump fields and try something new and put in the work. I knew I liked research, so I said why not give it a shot?” What she didn’t realize was how her connection with Dr. Watts would prove so rewarding and educational.
“I said I’ll take a chance with her (as a mentor) because she sounds awesome and we’ll see how it goes,” Wabel said. “And she built me from the ground up, she taught me how to work with (lab) rats and how to do all the tests. The things we’re doing in this lab I’d never done before, and I really love the research. It was a total leap of faith and I’m super happy I did it.”
For Dr. Watts, who has spent years studying hypertension, Wabel’s project dovetails nicely with her long-time research. “Emma was willing to make herself vulnerable to do something like this,” she said. “There’s a lot of trial and error and she was so brave because some of the animal work scared her to pieces. But she is so excited about learning. The last two years, Emma has come alive.”
Wabel’s goal, and what has intrigued the AHA, is her belief that the study of obesity and treatment of hypertension, which have been studied for decades, has often looked at the two separately and few have looked at chemerin as the reason. Looking ahead, she plans to continue work as a pharmacology researcher.
“I’ve always loved medicine,” she said. “But I think germs are gross. I’m the worst germaphobe out there and I have no interest in actually treating patients. So, I think research is a fun alternative and I can still be in the science and directing how we practice medicine.”