ATLANTA — Raquibul Hasan, Ph.D., associate professor at Mercer University’s College of Pharmacy, has received a $2.98 million research grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This funding will support his work on how statins — commonly prescribed to lower cholesterol — may also provide a new and immediate way to reduce blood pressure.
Statins are one of the most widely used medications in the world, with more than 200 million people taking them to manage cholesterol. However, Dr. Hasan’s research suggests that these drugs may have an additional, unexpected benefit: they can quickly relax blood vessels and lower blood pressure, separate from their cholesterol-lowering effects. This discovery could improve how doctors use statins and help prevent heart attacks and strokes.
“Many people take statins to lower cholesterol, but our research shows they may also have an immediate effect on blood pressure, which could save lives,” Dr. Hasan said.
Traditionally, statins have been thought to lower blood pressure only after months or years of cholesterol reduction. Dr. Hasan’s findings reveal a new biological mechanism that allows statins to act much faster. This could be especially beneficial for patients who need quick relief from high blood pressure.
Scientists have debated for years whether statins lower blood pressure, with conflicting studies making it unclear. Dr. Hasan’s research provides a more evident answer, identifying a specific molecular target that statins interact with to relax blood vessels. His findings could change how doctors prescribe statins and improve heart disease and hypertension treatment strategies.
Dr. Hasan leads Mercer’s Hasan Cardiovascular Research Laboratory, where his team focuses on repurposing existing medications and developing new treatments for conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes and stroke. Over the past three years, his lab has secured multiple research grants from the American Heart Association and the NIH. This grant is the largest received by the College of Pharmacy from the NIH.
