Marina Cerrone, MD

My research activity spans the clinical, basic and translational aspects of inherited arrhythmias and cardiomyopathies. General areas are coordination of registries of patients with inherited arrhythmias, genotype-phenotype correlations, new risk indicators for life-threatening arrhythmias, development of novel therapies, identification of gene variants related to arrhythmia risk in the young, curation and interpretation of genetic variants, and clinical trials for patients affected by genetic arrhythmias and cardiomyopathies. 

My current basic/translational research projects seek to advance knowledge on disease mechanisms, and treatment, of patients with inheritable Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy (ACM) caused by deficiency in Plakophilin-2 (PKP2). I have led preclinical studies on the safety and efficacy of gene therapy approaches utilizing murine models of the disease. Our studies have facilitated the implementation of clinical trials on gene therapy for patients with PKP2-ACM. These ongoing efforts intertwine with clinical collaborations that overall seek to improve our understanding of inheritable arrhythmia diseases, their mechanisms and potential treatment.