Members’ Labs

Li Lai, PhD

Assistant Professor
Cardiovascular Sciences
Houston Methodist Research Institute

Primary Research:

Ischemic cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of disability, morbidity, and mortality globally. The ability to restore or enhance the microvasculature would be a major advancement in regenerative medicine and cardiovascular therapies. Our lab uses a unique multidisciplinary approach to study molecular mechanisms driving cardiovascular diseases, including peripheral artery disease and heart failure. We combine multiple approaches, including in vitro and animal models, and an in vivo CRISPR-Cas9-based screening platform coupled with the lineage tracing approach.

Laboratory web site URL:

https://scholars.houstonmethodist.org/en/persons/li-lai/

Recent Presentations:

2026 Frontiers in Cardiovascular Research, Honolulu, Hawaii
2025 University of Texas McGovern Medical School Center for Metabolic and Degenerative Diseases Seminar Series, Houston, TX
2024 The 6th Annual Gulf Coast Vascular Research Consortium Meeting, Houston, TX
2024 The 8th Cardiovascular Bioengineering Symposium, Houston, TX
2023 American Heart Association Scientific Session, Philadelphia, PA
2023 NIH Progenitor Cell Translational Consortium Cardiovascular Bioengineering Symposium, Kyoto, Japan
2023 NHLBI Celebration of Progenitor Cell Research and Translation meeting, Bethesda, MD
2022 NAVBO Annual Meeting, Oakland, CA

Members of the Laboratory

Recent Publications

Li S, Gupta K, Ranka R, Lu A, Naegele F, Graber M, Carter K, Zhang L, Bhimaraj A, Lai L, Mojiri A, Youker K, Chen K, and Cooke J. (2025) Recovery from Heart Failure: Microvascular Mechanisms. Circulation. CIRCULATIONAHA/2025/078996D-AR1.
Li S, Lu A, Nagueh E, Li Y, Graber M, Carter K, Morales E, Nagueh E, Kriss C, Cooke J, Lai L. (2025) O-GlcNAcylation promotes angiogenic transdifferentiation to reverse ischemia.
Nature Cardiovascular Research. DOI: 10.1038/s44161-025-00673-7
M. Graber, S. Schmidt, L. Stranger, M. Fiegl, C. Plattner, L. Pölzl, J. Hirsch, F. Nägele, D. Hau, L. Lai, A. Lu, Z. Trajanoski, N. Bonaros, M. Grimm, J. P. Cooke, J. Holfeld, C. Engler, C. Gollmann-Tepeköylü, S. Mair. (2025) Therapeutic Inhibition of HIF2a Reduces Cardiac Fibrosis in Heart Failure. The Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeon. DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1804061
Chen W, Zhang P, Tran T, Xiao X, Li S, Shah V, Cheng H, Brannan K, Youker K, Lai L, Fang L, Yang. Y, Le N, Abe J, Chen S, Ma Q, Chen K, Song Q, Cooke J, Wang G. (2025) A visual-omics foundation model to bridge histopathology with spatial transcriptomics. Nature Methods. DOI: 10.1038/s41592-025-02707-1
Zhang P, Chen C, Tran T, Zhou M, Carter K, Kandel I, Li S, Hoi X, Sun Y, Lai L, Youker K, Song Q, Yang Y, Nikolos F, Li Z, Chan K, Cooke J, Wang G. (2025). Thor: a platform for cell-level investigation of spatial transcriptomics and histology. Nature Communications. DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4909620/v1
Cooke J, Youker K, Lai L. (2024). Myocardial Recovery versus Myocardial Regeneration: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Modulation. Methodist Debakey Cardiovasc J. DOI: 10.14797/mdcvj.1400
Malhi N, Southerland K, Chen Z, Lai L (2023). Epigenetic Regulation of Angiogenesis in Peripheral Artery Disease. Methodist Debakey Cardiovasc J. DOI: 10.14797/mdcvj.1294
Cooke J, Lai L. (2023). Transflammation in tissue regeneration and response to injury: How cell-autonomous inflammatory signaling mediates cell plasticity. Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews. DOI: 10.1016/j.addr.2023.115118
Cooke J, Lai L. (2023). Role of angiogenic transdifferentiation in vascular recovery. Front Cardiovasc Med. doi:10.3389/fcvm.2023.1155835
Lai L, Reineke E, Hamilton D, Cooke J (2019). Glycolytic switch is required for transdifferentiation to endothelial lineage. Circulation. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.118.035741