Ang Guo

Associate Professor

Faculty

Pharmaceutical Sciences School of Pharmacy

Credentials

PhD

Areas of Study & Research

My long-term interest is to bridge deep mechanistic insight with practical bioengineering, advancing both our understanding of cardiac pathophysiology and our capacity to design novel biological systems. My current research focuses on understanding the cardiac innate immune system, with a broader interest in protein multifunctionality, synthetic biology, protein design, and the application of deep learning and AI approaches. My lab employs a multidisciplinary approach that includes molecular biology, biochemistry, electrophysiology, animal models, and computational methods to address scientific questions.

Opportunities are available for motivated postdoctoral researchers, PhD students, and part-time technicians. Applicants for PhD students should hold a Master’s degree in a biological, bioengineering, or biomedical science discipline, and must have a completed research thesis and clear evidence of strong research experience. Exceptional undergraduate applicants with extensive research experience may be considered for the PhD candidates. Postdoc and PhD candidate applicants should have demonstrated expertise in at least one of the following areas: (1) biochemistry and molecular biology or synthetic biology; (2) cardiac or neurophysiology with rodent surgery experience; (3) patch clamp; (4) pancreatic cancer biology; (5) human iPSC culture and differentiation; (6) bioinformatics and deep-learning.

Grants Awarded

  • NIH COBRE (P20) Research Project Leader (RPL)
  • NSF CAREER (PI), 2026-2031
  • NIH R21 1R21AI186052-01A1 (PI), 2025-2027
  • American Heart Association Innovative Award (PI), 2025-2027
  • NIH R03 1R03AG077141-01A1 (PI), 2022-2024
  • NIH 1R15CA195499-01A1 revised (PI), 2019-2020
  • NDSU EPSCoR Funding FAR0032269 (PI), 2019-2020
  • NDSU EPSCoR Funding FAR0033282 (PI), 2020-2021
  • ND EPSCoR Funding FAR0031578 (PI), 2020-2021
  • American Heart Association (AHA) scientist development grant 16SDG30820003 (PI), 2016-2019
  • American Heart Association Postdoctoral Award Fellowship 13POST14630077 (PI), 2013-2015

Patent

WO/2017/214296

Software development

Independently developed AutoTT, which is an image analysis software used for processing and analyzing structure of sarcomere and T-tubules in myocytes. More than 30 labs all over the world requested and used this software.

Independently developed CaTeasy, which is a software used for analyzing Ca2+ signals imaged by confocal microscopy. This software is used routinely in my lab.

Courses Taught

PSCI 414/614, Cardiovascular Pharmacodynamics
PSCI 411/611, Principles of Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics
PSCI 301, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology for Pharmacists

Education

  • 09/2003-03/2010, PhD: Physiology and Molecular Cardiology, Shanghai Institute of Health Sciences, Shanghai Institute for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
  • 09/1999-06/2003, BS: Biochemical Engineering, Nanjing University of Technology, China

Publications

Gao T, Arshad A, Kerrigan E, Akinlalu A, Gao S, Ogberefor E, Kallweit L, Saji M, Wisniewski H, Yang X, Kumar S, Linseman D, Ning B, Zhang F, Guo A, Paredes D, Horowitz S, Xia W, Sun D. Label-free DNA structural profiling via elliptical dichroism spectroscopy. Biosens Bioelectron. 2026 Nov 1;311:118915. doi: 10.1016/j.bios.2026.118915. Epub 2026 Jun 7. PMID: 42275907.

Shi Y, Mirabdali S, Vetter SW, Guo A. Junctophilin-2 is a double-stranded RNA-binding protein that regulates cardiomyocyte-autonomous innate immune response. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2024 Nov 12;733:150725. doi: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2024.150725. Epub 2024 Sep 20. PMID: 39317111; PMCID: PMC11530139.

Akinlalu A, Flaten Z, Rasuleva K, Mia MS, Bauer A, Elamurugan S, Ejjigu N, Maity S, Arshad A, Wu M, Xia W, Fan J, Guo A, Mathew S, Sun D. Integrated proteomic profiling identifies amino acids selectively cytotoxic to pancreatic cancer cells. Innovation (Camb). 2024 Apr 9;5(3):100626. doi: 10.1016/j.xinn.2024.100626. PMID: 38699777; PMCID: PMC11063643.

Rasuleva K, Jangili KP, Akinlalu A, Guo A, Borowicz P, Li CZ, Sun D. EvIPqPCR, Target Circulating Tumorous Extracellular Vesicles for Detection of Pancreatic Cancer. Anal Chem. 2023 Jul 11;95(27):10353-10361. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.3c01218. Epub 2023 Jun 20. PMID: 37339258.

Kawagishi H, Nakada T, Numaga-Tomita T, Larrañaga M, Guo A, Song LS, Yamada M. Cytokine receptor gp130 promotes postnatal proliferation of cardiomyocytes required for the normal functional development of the heart. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2022 Jul 1;323(1):H103-H120. doi: 10.1152/ajpheart.00698.2021. Epub 2022 May 20. PMID: 35594067.

Rasuleva K, Elamurugan S, Bauer A, Khan M, Wen Q, Li Z, Steen P, Guo A, Xia W, Mathew S, Jansen R, Sun D. β-Sheet Richness of the Circulating Tumor-Derived Extracellular Vesicles for Noninvasive Pancreatic Cancer Screening. ACS Sens. 2021 Dec 24;6(12):4489-4498. doi: 10.1021/acssensors.1c02022. Epub 2021 Nov 30. PMID: 34846848; PMCID: PMC8715533.

Guo A, Fang W, Gibson S. Sequence determinants of human junctophilin-2 protein nuclear localization and phase separation. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2021 Jul 23;563:79-84. doi: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2021.05.078. Epub 2021 May 29. PMID: 34062390.

Guo A, Wang Y, Chen B, Wang Y, Yuan J, Zhang L, Hall D, Wu J, Shi Y, Zhu Q, Chen C, Thiel WH, Zhan X, Weiss RM, Zhan F, Musselman CA, Pufall M, Zhu W, Au KF, Hong J, Anderson ME, Grueter CE, Song LS. E-C coupling structural protein junctophilin-2 encodes a stress-adaptive transcription regulator. Science. 2018 Dec 21;362(6421):eaan3303. doi: 10.1126/science.aan3303. Epub 2018 Nov 8. PMID: 30409805; PMCID: PMC6336677.

Wang Y, Chen B, Huang CK, Guo A, Wu J, Zhang X, Chen R, Chen C, Kutschke W, Weiss RM, Boudreau RL, Margulies KB, Hong J, Song LS. Targeting Calpain for Heart Failure Therapy: Implications From Multiple Murine Models. JACC Basic Transl Sci. 2018 Aug 28;3(4):503-517. doi: 10.1016/j.jacbts.2018.05.004. PMID: 30175274; PMCID: PMC6115647.

Guo A, Chen R, Wang Y, Huang CK, Chen B, Kutschke W, Hong J, Song LS. Transient activation of PKC results in long-lasting detrimental effects on systolic [Ca2+]i in cardiomyocytes by altering actin cytoskeletal dynamics and T-tubule integrity. J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2018 Feb;115:104-114. doi: 10.1016/j.yjmcc.2018.01.003. Epub 2018 Jan 4. PMID: 29307535; PMCID: PMC5839099.

Zhang C, Chen B, Wang Y, Guo A, Tang Y, Khataei T, Shi Y, Kutschke WJ, Zimmerman K, Weiss RM, Liu J, Benson CJ, Hong J, Ma J, Song LS. MG53 is dispensable for T-tubule maturation but critical for maintaining T-tubule integrity following cardiac stress. J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2017 Nov;112:123-130. doi: 10.1016/j.yjmcc.2017.08.007. Epub 2017 Aug 16. PMID: 28822805; PMCID: PMC5682927.

Guo Y, VanDusen NJ, Zhang L, Gu W, Sethi I, Guatimosim S, Ma Q, Jardin BD, Ai Y, Zhang D, Chen B, Guo A, Yuan GC, Song LS, Pu WT. Analysis of Cardiac Myocyte Maturation Using CASAAV, a Platform for Rapid Dissection of Cardiac Myocyte Gene Function In Vivo. Circ Res. 2017 Jun 9;120(12):1874-1888. doi: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.116.310283. Epub 2017 Mar 29. PMID: 28356340; PMCID: PMC5466492.

Arora R, Aistrup GL, Supple S, Frank C, Singh J, Tai S, Zhao A, Chicos L, Marszalec W, Guo A, Song LS, Wasserstrom JA. Regional distribution of T-tubule density in left and right atria in dogs. Heart Rhythm. 2017 Feb;14(2):273-281. doi: 10.1016/j.hrthm.2016.09.022. Epub 2016 Sep 23. PMID: 27670628; PMCID: PMC5484147.

Zhong X, Sun B, Vallmitjana A, Mi T, Guo W, Ni M, Wang R, Guo A, Duff HJ, Gillis AM, Song LS, Hove-Madsen L, Benitez R, Chen SR. Suppression of ryanodine receptor function prolongs Ca2+ release refractoriness and promotes cardiac alternans in intact hearts. Biochem J. 2016 Nov 1;473(21):3951-3964. doi: 10.1042/BCJ20160606. Epub 2016 Aug 31. PMID: 27582498; PMCID: PMC5522810.

Zhu Y, Zhang C, Chen B, Chen R, Guo A, Hong J, Song LS. Cholesterol is required for maintaining T-tubule integrity and intercellular connections at intercalated discs in cardiomyocytes. J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2016 Aug;97:204-12. doi: 10.1016/j.yjmcc.2016.05.013. Epub 2016 May 30. PMID: 27255730; PMCID: PMC5002380.

Huang CK, Chen BY, Guo A, Chen R, Zhu YQ, Kutschke W, Hong J, Song LS. Sildenafil ameliorates left ventricular T-tubule remodeling in a pressure overload-induced murine heart failure model. Acta Pharmacol Sin. 2016 Apr;37(4):473-82. doi: 10.1038/aps.2016.13. Epub 2016 Mar 14. PMID: 26972492; PMCID: PMC4820805.

Guo A, Hall D, Zhang C, Peng T, Miller JD, Kutschke W, Grueter CE, Johnson FL, Lin RZ, Song LS. Molecular Determinants of Calpain-dependent Cleavage of Junctophilin-2 Protein in Cardiomyocytes. J Biol Chem. 2015 Jul 17;290(29):17946-17955. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M115.652396. Epub 2015 Jun 10. PMID: 26063807; PMCID: PMC4505042.

Chen B, Zhang C, Guo A, Song LS. In situ single photon confocal imaging of cardiomyocyte T-tubule system from Langendorff-perfused hearts. Front Physiol. 2015 May 6;6:134. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2015.00134. PMID: 25999861; PMCID: PMC4422017.

Ye Y, Sun Z, Guo A, Song LS, Grobe JL, Chen S. Ablation of the GNB3 gene in mice does not affect body weight, metabolism or blood pressure, but causes bradycardia. Cell Signal. 2014 Nov;26(11):2514-20. doi: 10.1016/j.cellsig.2014.07.030. Epub 2014 Aug 2. PMID: 25093805; PMCID: PMC4160384.

Guo A, Zhang X, Iyer VR, Chen B, Zhang C, Kutschke WJ, Weiss RM, Franzini-Armstrong C, Song LS. Overexpression of junctophilin-2 does not enhance baseline function but attenuates heart failure development after cardiac stress. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2014 Aug 19;111(33):12240-5. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1412729111. Epub 2014 Aug 4. PMID: 25092313; PMCID: PMC4143026.

Zhang J, Chen B, Zhong X, Mi T, Guo A, Zhou Q, Tan Z, Wu G, Chen AW, Fill M, Song LS, Chen SR. The cardiac ryanodine receptor luminal Ca2+ sensor governs Ca2+ waves, ventricular tachyarrhythmias and cardiac hypertrophy in calsequestrin-null mice. Biochem J. 2014 Jul 1;461(1):99-106. doi: 10.1042/BJ20140126. PMID: 24758151; PMCID: PMC4277184.

Guo A, Song LS. AutoTT: automated detection and analysis of T-tubule architecture in cardiomyocytes. Biophys J. 2014 Jun 17;106(12):2729-36. doi: 10.1016/j.bpj.2014.05.013. PMID: 24940790; PMCID: PMC4070273.

Zhang C, Chen B, Guo A, Zhu Y, Miller JD, Gao S, Yuan C, Kutschke W, Zimmerman K, Weiss RM, Wehrens XH, Hong J, Johnson FL, Santana LF, Anderson ME, Song LS. Microtubule-mediated defects in junctophilin-2 trafficking contribute to myocyte transverse-tubule remodeling and Ca2+ handling dysfunction in heart failure. Circulation. 2014 Apr 29;129(17):1742-50. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.113.008452. Epub 2014 Feb 11. PMID: 24519927; PMCID: PMC4006305.

Chen W, Wang R, Chen B, Zhong X, Kong H, Bai Y, Zhou Q, Xie C, Zhang J, Guo A, Tian X, Jones PP, O'Mara ML, Liu Y, Mi T, Zhang L, Bolstad J, Semeniuk L, Cheng H, Zhang J, Chen J, Tieleman DP, Gillis AM, Duff HJ, Fill M, Song LS, Chen SR. The ryanodine receptor store-sensing gate controls Ca2+ waves and Ca2+-triggered arrhythmias. Nat Med. 2014 Feb;20(2):184-92. doi: 10.1038/nm.3440. Epub 2014 Jan 19. PMID: 24441828; PMCID: PMC4269524.

Chen B, Guo A, Zhang C, Chen R, Zhu Y, Hong J, Kutschke W, Zimmerman K, Weiss RM, Zingman L, Anderson ME, Wehrens XH, Song LS. Critical roles of junctophilin-2 in T-tubule and excitation-contraction coupling maturation during postnatal development. Cardiovasc Res. 2013 Oct 1;100(1):54-62. doi: 10.1093/cvr/cvt180. Epub 2013 Jul 16. PMID: 23860812; PMCID: PMC3778961.

Bai Y, Jones PP, Guo J, Zhong X, Clark RB, Zhou Q, Wang R, Vallmitjana A, Benitez R, Hove-Madsen L, Semeniuk L, Guo A, Song LS, Duff HJ, Chen SR. Phospholamban knockout breaks arrhythmogenic Ca²⁺ waves and suppresses catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia in mice. Circ Res. 2013 Aug 16;113(5):517-26. doi: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.113.301678. Epub 2013 Jul 15. PMID: 23856523; PMCID: PMC3864692.

Guo A, Zhang C, Wei S, Chen B, Song LS. Emerging mechanisms of T-tubule remodelling in heart failure. Cardiovasc Res. 2013 May 1;98(2):204-15. doi: 10.1093/cvr/cvt020. Epub 2013 Feb 7. PMID: 23393229; PMCID: PMC3697065.

Song LS, Guo A, Lin RZ. MicroRNA: a toolkit fine-tuning the dyadic "fuzzy space"? Circ Res. 2012 Sep 14;111(7):816-8. doi: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.112.278390. PMID: 22982867; PMCID: PMC3505765.

Chen B, Guo A, Gao Z, Wei S, Xie YP, Chen SR, Anderson ME, Song LS. In situ confocal imaging in intact heart reveals stress-induced Ca(2+) release variability in a murine catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia model of type 2 ryanodine receptor(R4496C+/-) mutation. Circ Arrhythm Electrophysiol. 2012 Aug 1;5(4):841-9. doi: 10.1161/CIRCEP.111.969733. Epub 2012 Jun 21. PMID: 22722659; PMCID: PMC3421047.

Chen B, Li Y, Jiang S, Xie YP, Guo A, Kutschke W, Zimmerman K, Weiss RM, Miller FJ, Anderson ME, Song LS. β-Adrenergic receptor antagonists ameliorate myocyte T-tubule remodeling following myocardial infarction. FASEB J. 2012 Jun;26(6):2531-7. doi: 10.1096/fj.11-199505. Epub 2012 Feb 28. PMID: 22375019; PMCID: PMC3360148.

Guo A, Cala SE, Song LS. Calsequestrin accumulation in rough endoplasmic reticulum promotes perinuclear Ca2+ release. J Biol Chem. 2012 May 11;287(20):16670-80. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M112.340927. Epub 2012 Mar 28. PMID: 22457350; PMCID: PMC3351355.

Xie YP, Chen B, Sanders P, Guo A, Li Y, Zimmerman K, Wang LC, Weiss RM, Grumbach IM, Anderson ME, Song LS. Sildenafil prevents and reverses transverse-tubule remodeling and Ca(2+) handling dysfunction in right ventricle failure induced by pulmonary artery hypertension. Hypertension. 2012 Feb;59(2):355-62. doi: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.111.180968. Epub 2011 Dec 27. PMID: 22203744; PMCID: PMC3266850.

Zhou Q, Xiao J, Jiang D, Wang R, Vembaiyan K, Wang A, Smith CD, Xie C, Chen W, Zhang J, Tian X, Jones PP, Zhong X, Guo A, Chen H, Zhang L, Zhu W, Yang D, Li X, Chen J, Gillis AM, Duff HJ, Cheng H, Feldman AM, Song LS, Fill M, Back TG, Chen SR. Carvedilol and its new analogs suppress arrhythmogenic store overload-induced Ca2+ release. Nat Med. 2011 Jul 10;17(8):1003-9. doi: 10.1038/nm.2406. PMID: 21743453; PMCID: PMC3268079.

Wei S, Guo A, Chen B, Kutschke W, Xie YP, Zimmerman K, Weiss RM, Anderson ME, Cheng H, Song LS. T-tubule remodeling during transition from hypertrophy to heart failure. Circ Res. 2010 Aug 20;107(4):520-31. doi: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.109.212324. Epub 2010 Jun 24. PMID: 20576937; PMCID: PMC2927862.

Guo A, Yang HT. Ca2+ removal mechanisms in mouse embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol. 2009 Sep;297(3):C732-41. doi: 10.1152/ajpcell.00025.2009. Epub 2009 Jul 15. PMID: 19605739.

Li J, Zhang H, Zhu WZ, Yu Z, Guo A, Yang HT, Zhou ZN. Preservation of the pHi during ischemia via PKC by intermittent hypoxia. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2007 May 4;356(2):329-33. doi: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2007.02.128. Epub 2007 Mar 5.