Karen K. Hirschi
= Karen K. Hirschi
{c}
= K. K. Hirschi
{c}
{synonym}
\b[Karen K. Hirschi] is a vascular biologist whose research concerns the development and organization of blood vessels. Her professional-organization profile and the full byline of the follow-up artery study establish the identity behind K. K. Hirschi in the earlier collaboration.<Karen K. Hirschi profile by the North American Vascular Biology Organization>[Named profile and research account; linked full author byline]{ref}
Hirschi coauthored the primary report of functional arteries grown in vitro.<Functional arteries grown in vitro by L. E. Niklason and others>[Byline]{ref} The work joins <cell differentiation> with an engineering question: can cultured vascular <cells> form a structure with useful tissue function? The <endothelial cells> lining a vessel and the <smooth muscle cells> in its wall have different roles, so an organized construct requires more than simply increasing a total cell count.
A useful way to assess such a construct is to compare cell identity, spatial organization and response to a functional challenge. A marker associated with a differentiated cell state answers a different question from a test of whole-vessel contraction or pressure resistance. Connecting these observations is central to the interface between vascular biology and <tissue engineering>.