Thomas McDonald, MD

Professor, Internal Medicine (Cardiology) and Molecular Pharmacology & Physiology

Member

Professor, College of Medicine Molecular Pharmacology & Physiology

Professor, College of Medicine Internal Medicine

Contact Info

• Office: MDD 619
• Academic Email: thomasmcdonald@usf.edu
• Academic Phone: (813) 974-5413
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Education

Biography

Dr. McDonald is a Physician-Scientist in the Departments of Medicine (Cardiology) and Molecular Pharmacology & Physiology at USF Morsani College of Medicine. His research and clinical activities focus on Mendelian genetic cardiac conditions of arrhythmia and cardiomyopathy. Aligned with the McDonald laboratory is the USF Cardiogenetics Clinic where families are evaluated for hereditary heart diseases. Blood samples from clinic patients are collected for re-programming into patient-specific-induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs). The iPSCs are differentiated into a variety of tissue types, including cardiac myocytes and other cardiac-resident cell types. When cultured together, “Cardiac Organoids” are generated to study the interplay of different cell lineages that comprise the intact human heart. This functional tissue, with the identical genetic constitution of the donor can recapitulate the biological processes underlying their condition and have been termed “disease-in-a-dish”. Using patient-specific iPSCs, the McDonald laboratory investigates the precise mechanisms of how genetic variation causes disease particular to the patient. These disease mechanisms are further explored by employing specific therapeutic modalities with the aim towards translational approaches and Precision Medicine.