Åshild Telle, BSc, MSc, PhD

Postdoctoral Scholar in the Department of Bioengineering

Åshild (pronunciation guide) was born and raised in Norway, in a town ~2 hours away from Oslo. She earned her Bachelor of Science from the University of Oslo, specializing in Mathematics and Informatics. During her undergraduate studies, she got into scientific programming, appreciating how it could be used to solve large mathematical problems. Åshild also holds a Master of Science degree in Mathematics and Statistics from the University of Melbourne, with a combined focus on applied mathematics, graph theory, and optimization problems. Her studies abroad in Australia introduced her to a wide range of real-world problems, and to scientific research as a trade. Most recently, she earned her PhD from the University of Oslo, for work undertaken at the Simula Research Laboratory under the supervision of Prof. Aslak Tveito, Chief Research Scientist Samuel T. Wall, and others. Her dissertation research was based in part on an ongoing collaboration with researchers at the UC Berkeley Biomaterials & Tissue Engineering Laboratory, led by Prof. Kevin E. Healy who served as one of Åshild’s doctoral co-supervisors. During her PhD studies, she got into biology for the first time, learning how mathematics and scientific computing could be combined with life sciences to explore aspects of and obtain a deeper understanding of human physiology. She developed a new mechanical cell-based model for cardiac tissue, and explored various techniques and tools for analyzing mechanical features of cardiac microtissues, developed from cardiomyocyte-like cells derived from induced pluripotent stem cells. In the CardSS Lab, she will serve as the lead researcher and key technical engineer on our NIH-funded project exploring the concept of the fibrotic left atrium as a pathophysiological nexus for thrombogenesis and arrhythmogenesis.

During her free time, Åshild is an avid traveller, a coffee drinker, a plant person, a hiker, and an instagrammer.

Education:

BSc: Mathematics and Informatics, University of Oslo
MSc: Mathematics and Statistics, University of Melbourne
PhD: Informatics, University of Oslo

Dissertation title: “Modeling cardiac mechanics on a microscale; Mechanical modeling and analysis of cardiomyocytes and cardiac micromuscles”

Yaacoub Chahine, M.D.

Yaacoub is a postdoctoral research fellow in the Division of Cardiology at the University of Washington. Yaacoub’s interest in cardiac electrophysiology dates back to his first classes on ion channels and cardiac conduction in his early years of college. After finishing medical school, Yaacoub joined the Atrial Fibrillation Program under the mentorship of Dr. Nazem Akoum with plans of pursuing internal medicine and cardiology.

Yaacoub received his medical doctorate from the Lebanese University in Beirut, Lebanon. Passionate about medicine, he graduated valedictorian of his class and received the Academic Merit Scholarship from the American Lebanese Medical Association.

Yaacoub joined Dr. Patrick Boyle and the CardSS lab to study the relationship between epicardial adipose tissue and fibrotic remodeling in patients with atrial fibrillation. After presenting his work in Park City, Utah, Yaacoub won first place in the Western Atrial Fibrillation Symposium Scientific Scholarship Competition.

Outside of work, Yaacoub enjoys working out and weightlifting, trying out new bars and restaurants with friends, watching soccer, and the occasional Netflix series.

Education:

M.D.: Lebanese University Faculty of Medical Sciences, 2021

Fima Macheret, B.S., M.D.

Fima is a fellow in the Division of Cardiology at the University of Washington. Because of his background in biochemical engineering, Fima became interested in cardiology from his very first hemodynamics course in medical school. He completed a master’s degree in clinical and translational science in Dr. John C. Burnett, Jr.’s cardiorenal research laboratory investigating the relationship between pro-B type natriuretic peptide, heart failure, and hypertension in the general community. His work received an AHA predoctoral grant and a young investigator research award.

He trained in internal medicine at Weil Cornell Medical Center at New York Presbyterian Hospital where he worked with Jorge Kizer to study the relationship between adiponectin and new onset atrial fibrillation in the MESA cohort. Fima also completed board certification in clinical informatics and subsequently developed a machine learning based score for heart failure mortality prediction with Drs. Eric Adler and Avi Yagil at UC San Diego.

Fima returned to UW to pursue clinical cardiology training. He became interested in electrophysiology because he loves working with patients and cardiologists to better understand and treat cardiac electrical problems. Fima joined Dr. Patrick Boyle and Cardiac Systems Simulations lab to work on translational applications of MRI-based modeling, computational simulations, and biomarkers in atrial fibrillation. They have had their work accepted for presentation at American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2021.

Outside of work, Fima enjoys cooking and nutrition, basque-style cider, travel, olympic weight lifting, gardening, chasing his two dogs, and hiking with his wife.

Education:

B.S.P. cum laude: Chemical (Biochemical) Engineering, University of Southern California, 2006
M.D., M.S. (Clinical and Translational Science): Mayo Clinical College of Medicine, 2011