Brandi M. Wynne, PhD
Brandi M. Wynne, PhD is an instructor of medicine in the Division of Renal Medicine with a background in cardio-renal physiology and pharmacology. Previously, Dr. Wynne was a postdoctoral fellow under Dr. Robert Hoover, where she focused on the hormonal regulation of the sodium chloride cotransporter (NCC) and the epithelial sodium channel. Her current research investigates the role of inflammation in the etiology of salt-sensitive hypertension.
Hypertensive patients frequently have a normal level of aldosterone, the main ligand for the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR), which regulates sodium transport proteins in the distal nephron. However, these patients often have indices of aldosterone excess and respond positively to MR antagonists, suggesting that there are alternative mechanisms of MR activation. Dr. Wynne’s research has shown that interleukin-6 (IL-6) plays a role in this process. She recently discovered that IL-6 transactivates the MR, leading to activation of the sodium chloride cotransporter. Understanding how renal-specific immune cells and cytokines regulate sodium homeostasis is the focus of her NIH NIDDK K01 application.
In her spare time, Dr. Wynne enjoys the arts, politics, and traveling as much as possible.
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