Matthew Springer, PhD

Professor

RESEARCH INTERESTS:

Dr. Matthew L. Springer received his BA from the University of California, Berkeley in 1985 and his Ph.D. from Stanford University in 1992. He did postdoctoral research at Stanford and continued his research there as a senior scientist until joining the UCSF faculty in 2003, where he is currently one of the few non-clinicians on the faculty of the Division of Cardiology. The close juxtaposition of his basic research background with the clinical cardiologists in the Division has resulted in an active translational research program. Dr. Springer's research interests include cell therapy and gene therapy approaches to studying cardiovascular disease, and a major focus on the adverse effects of tobacco, marijuana, and e-cigarettes on cardiovascular function in rodents and humans.

Publications

  1. Mohammadi L, Navabzadeh M, Jiménez-Téllez N, Han DD, Reagan E, Naughton J, Zhou LY, Almeida R, Castaneda LM, Abdelaal SA, Park KS, Uyemura K, Cheung CP, Onder MN, Goyal N, Rao P, Hellman J, Cheng J, Wu JC, Marcus GM, Springer ML. Association of Endothelial Dysfunction With Chronic Marijuana Smoking and THC-Edible Use. JAMA cardiology 2025. PMID: 40434782


  2. Sicher AR, Liss A, Vozella V, Marsland P, Seemiller LR, Springer M, Starnes WD, Griffith KR, Smith GC, Astefanous A, Deak T, Roberto M, Varodayan FP, Crowley NA. Voluntary adolescent alcohol exposure does not robustly increase adulthood consumption of alcohol in multiple mouse and rat models. Addiction neuroscience 2024. PMID: 40375980


  3. Sicher AR, Liss A, Vozella V, Marsland P, Seemiller LR, Springer M, Starnes WD, Griffith KR, Smith GC, Astefanous A, Deak T, Roberto M, Varodayan FP, Crowley NA. Voluntary adolescent alcohol exposure does not robustly increase adulthood consumption of alcohol in multiple mouse and rat models. bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology 2024. PMID: 38746266


  4. Strongin, R.M., Sharma, E., Erythropel, H.C., El-Hellani, A., Kassem, N.O.F., Mikheev, V.B., Noël, A., Peyton, D.H., Springer, M.L.. Emerging ENDS products and challenges in tobacco control toxicity research Tob Control 2024. PMID:


  5. Liu J, Nabavizadeh P, Rao P, Derakhshandeh R, Han DD, Guo R, Murphy MB, Cheng J, Schick SF, Springer ML. Impairment of Endothelial Function by Aerosol From Marijuana Leaf Vaporizers. Journal of the American Heart Association 2023. PMID: 38014661


  6. Wang X, Gaur M, Mounzih K, Rodriguez HJ, Qiu H, Chen M, Yan L, Cooper BA, Narayan S, Derakhshandeh R, Rao P, Han DD, Nabavizadeh P, Springer ML, John CM. Inhibition of galectin-3 post-infarction impedes progressive fibrosis by regulating inflammatory profibrotic cascades. Cardiovascular research 2023. PMID: 37602717


  7. Mohindra P, Zhong JX, Fang Q, Cuylear DL, Huynh C, Qiu H, Gao D, Kharbikar BN, Huang X, Springer ML, Lee RJ, Desai TA. Local decorin delivery via hyaluronic acid microrods improves cardiac performance, ventricular remodeling after myocardial infarction. NPJ Regenerative medicine 2023. PMID: 37872196


  8. Han DD, Rao P, Qiu H, Navabzadeh M, Wang X, Goyal N, Mohammadi L, Huang A, Perez BG, Schick SF, Springer ML. Impairment of Endothelial Function by Cigarette Smoke and e-Cigarette Aerosol Requires RAGE. Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology 2023. PMID: 37795616


  9. Qiu H, Zhang H, Han DD, Derakhshandeh R, Wang X, Goyal N, Navabzadeh M, Rao P, Wilson EE, Mohammadi L, Olgin JE, Springer ML. Increased vulnerability to atrial and ventricular arrhythmias caused by different types of inhaled tobacco or marijuana products. Heart rhythm 2022. PMID: 36603937


  10. Mohammadi L, Han DD, Xu F, Huang A, Derakhshandeh R, Rao P, Whitlatch A, Cheng J, Keith RJ, Hamburg NM, Ganz P, Hellman J, Schick SF, Springer ML. Chronic E-Cigarette Use Impairs Endothelial Function on the Physiological and Cellular Levels. Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology 2022. PMID: 36288290


  11. Nabavizadeh P, Liu J, Rao P, Ibrahim S, Han DD, Derakhshandeh R, Qiu H, Wang X, Glantz SA, Schick SF, Springer ML. Impairment of Endothelial Function by Cigarette Smoke Is Not Caused by a Specific Smoke Constituent, but by Vagal Input From the Airway. Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology 2022. PMID: 36288292


  12. Rao P, Han DD, Tan K, Mohammadi L, Derakhshandeh R, Navabzadeh M, Goyal N, Springer ML. Comparable Impairment of Vascular Endothelial Function by a Wide Range of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Devices. 2015 Year Book of Pediatrics. Ed. Cabana MD. (Elsevier; Philadelphia, PA) 2022. PMID: 35100430


  13. . Letter to the Editor. American journal of infection control 2021. PMID: 33577825


  14. Wang X, Chacon LI, Derakhshandeh R, Rodriguez HJ, Han DD, Kostyushev DS, Henry TD, Traverse JH, Moyé L, Simari RD, Taylor DA, Springer ML. Impaired therapeutic efficacy of bone marrow cells from post-myocardial infarction patients in the TIME and LateTIME clinical trials. PloS one 2020. PMID: 32841277


  15. Rao P, Liu J, Springer ML. JUUL and Combusted Cigarettes Comparably Impair Endothelial Function. Tobacco regulatory science 2020. PMID: 31930162


  16. Lee WH, Ong SG, Zhou Y, Tian L, Bae HR, Baker N, Whitlatch A, Mohammadi L, Guo H, Nadeau KC, Springer ML, Schick SF, Bhatnagar A, Wu JC. Modeling Cardiovascular Risks of E-Cigarettes With Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Endothelial Cells. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 2019. PMID: 31146818


  17. Nabavizadeh P, Liu J, Havel CM, Ibrahim S, Derakhshandeh R, Jacob Iii P, Springer ML. Vascular endothelial function is impaired by aerosol from a single IQOS HeatStick to the same extent as by cigarette smoke. Tobacco control 2018. PMID: 30206183


  18. An S, Wang X, Ruck MA, Rodriguez HJ, Kostyushev DS, Varga M, Luu E, Derakhshandeh R, Suchkov SV, Kogan SC, Hermiston ML, Springer ML. Age-Related Impaired Efficacy of Bone Marrow Cell Therapy for Myocardial Infarction Reflects a Decrease in B Lymphocytes. Molecular therapy : the journal of the American Society of Gene Therapy 2018. PMID: 29914756


  19. Gotts JE, Chun L, Abbott J, Fang X, Takasaka N, Nishimura SL, Springer ML, Schick SF, Calfee CS, Matthay MA. Cigarette smoke exposure worsens acute lung injury in antibiotic-treated bacterial pneumonia in mice. American journal of physiology. Lung cellular and molecular physiology 2018. PMID: 29543040


  20. Glantz SA, Halpern-Felsher B, Springer ML. Marijuana, Secondhand Smoke, and Social Acceptability. Volume 178 of Issue 1. JAMA internal medicine 2018. PMID: 29159409


  21. Wang X, Derakhshandeh R, Liu J, Narayan S, Nabavizadeh P, Le S, Danforth OM, Pinnamaneni K, Rodriguez HJ, Luu E, Sievers RE, Schick SF, Glantz SA, Springer ML. One Minute of Marijuana Secondhand Smoke Exposure Substantially Impairs Vascular Endothelial Function. Volume 5 of Issue 8. 2016. PMID: 27464788


  22. Springer ML. San Francisco Medicine CANNABIS: Clearing some smoke? 2016. PMID:


  23. Aschbacher K, Derakhshandeh R, Flores AJ, Narayan S, Mendes WB, Springer ML. Circulating angiogenic cell function is inhibited by cortisol in vitro and associated with psychological stress and cortisol in vivo. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2016. PMID: 26925833


  24. Chen Q, Varga M, Wang X, Haddad DJ, An S, Medzikovic L, Derakhshandeh R, Kostyushev DS, Zhang Y, Clifford BT, Luu E, Danforth OM, Rafikov R, Gong W, Black SM, Suchkov SV, Fineman JR, Heiss C, Aschbacher K, Yeghiazarians Y, Springer ML. Overexpression of Nitric Oxide Synthase Restores Circulating Angiogenic Cell Function in Patients With Coronary Artery Disease: Implications for Autologous Cell Therapy for Myocardial Infarction. Journal of the American Heart Association 2016. PMID: 26738788


  25. Liu J, Wang X, Narayan S, Glantz SA, Schick SF, Springer ML. Impairment of Endothelial Function by Little Cigar Secondhand Smoke. Volume 2 of Issue 1. 2016. PMID: 26753171


  26. Rafikov R, Kumar S, Aggarwal S, Pardo D, Fonseca FV, Ransom J, Rafikova O, Chen Q, Springer ML, Black SM. Protein engineering to develop a redox insensitive endothelial nitric oxide synthase Redox Biol 2014. PMID:


  27. Pinnamaneni K, Sievers RE, Sharma R, Selchau AM, Gutierrez G, Nordsieck EJ, Su R, An S, Chen Q, Wang X, Derakhshandeh R, Aschbacher K, Heiss C, Glantz SA, Schick SF, Springer ML. Brief exposure to secondhand smoke reversibly impairs endothelial vasodilatory function. Volume 16 of Issue 5. 2013. PMID: 24302638


  28. Horn P, Amabile N, Angeli FS, Sansone R, Stegemann B, Kelm M, Springer ML, Yeghiazarians Y, Schroeter H, Heiss C. Dietary flavanol intervention lowers the levels of endothelial microparticles in coronary artery disease patients. The British journal of nutrition 2013. PMID: 24286443


  29. Fang Q, Mok PY, Thomas AE, Haddad DJ, Saini SA, Clifford BT, Kapasi NK, Danforth OM, Usui M, Ye W, Luu E, Sharma R, Bartel MJ, Pathmanabhan JA, Ang AA, Sievers RE, Lee RJ, Springer ML. Pleiotrophin gene therapy for peripheral ischemia: evaluation of full-length and truncated gene variants. PloS one 2013. PMID: 23630585


  30. Chen Q, Sievers RE, Varga M, Kharait S, Haddad DJ, Patton AK, Delany CS, Mutka SC, Blonder JP, Dubé GP, Rosenthal GJ, Springer ML. Pharmacological inhibition of S-nitrosoglutathione reductase improves endothelial vasodilatory function in rats in vivo. Journal of applied physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985) 2013. PMID: 23349456


  31. Springer ML. Gene therapy and angiogenesis Cardiology: An Illustrated Textbook. K. Chatterjee et al., eds. 2013. PMID:


  32. Springer ML. Earthquake safety at work: An important topic to review with patients San Francisco Medicine 2012. PMID:


  33. Lin YD, Luo CY, Hu YN, Yeh ML, Hsueh YC, Chang MY, Tsai DC, Wang JN, Tang MJ, Wei EI, Springer ML, Hsieh PC. Instructive nanofiber scaffolds with VEGF create a microenvironment for arteriogenesis and cardiac repair. Science translational medicine 2012. PMID: 22875829


  34. Wang X, Takagawa J, Haddad DJ, Pinnamaneni K, Zhang Y, Sievers RE, Grossman W, Yeghiazarians Y, Springer ML. Advanced Donor Age Impairs Bone Marrow Cell Therapeutic Efficacy for Cardiac Disease. Volume S3. 2011. PMID: 22675670


  36. Aschbacher K, Chen Q, Varga M, Haddad DJ, Yeghiazarians Y, Epel E, Wolkowitz OM, Springer ML. Higher fasting glucose levels are associated with reduced circulating angiogenic cell migratory capacity among healthy individuals. American journal of cardiovascular disease 2011. PMID: 22254209


  37. Wang X, Takagawa J, Lam VC, Haddad DJ, Tobler DL, Mok PY, Zhang Y, Clifford BT, Pinnamaneni K, Saini SA, Su R, Bartel MJ, Sievers RE, Carbone L, Kogan S, Yeghiazarians Y, Hermiston M, Springer ML. Donor myocardial infarction impairs the therapeutic potential of bone marrow cells by an interleukin-1-mediated inflammatory response. Science translational medicine 2011. PMID: 21918107


  38. Kharait S, Haddad DJ, Springer ML. Nitric oxide counters the inhibitory effects of uremic toxin indoxyl sulfate on endothelial cells by governing ERK MAP kinase and myosin light chain activation. Biochemical and biophysical research communications 2011. PMID: 21621512


  39. Roberts WC, Springer ML, Wang X, Wang D. The launch of American Journal of Cardiovascular Disease Am J Cardiovasc Dis 2011. PMID:


  40. Zhang Y, Sievers RE, Prasad M, Mirsky R, Shih H, Wong ML, Angeli FS, Ye J, Takagawa J, Koskenvuo JW, Springer ML, Grossman W, Boyle AJ, Yeghiazarians Y. Timing of bone marrow cell therapy is more important than repeated injections after myocardial infarction Cardiovasc Pathol 2011. PMID:


  41. Heiss C, Schanz A, Amabile N, Jahn S, Chen Q, Wong ML, Rassaf T, Heinen Y, Cortese-Krott M, Grossman W, Yeghiazarians Y, Springer ML. Nitric oxide synthase expression and functional response to nitric oxide are both important modulators of circulating angiogenic cell response to angiogenic stimuli. Volume 30 of Issue 11. 2010. PMID: 20705916


  42. Heiss C, Jahn S, Taylor M, Real WM, Angeli FS, Wong ML, Amabile N, Prasad M, Rassaf T, Ottaviani JI, Mihardja S, Keen CL, Springer ML, Boyle A, Grossman W, Glantz SA, Schroeter H, Yeghiazarians Y. Improvement of endothelial function with dietary flavanols is associated with mobilization of circulating angiogenic cells in patients with coronary artery disease. Volume 56 of Issue 3. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 2010. PMID: 20620742


  43. Springer ML. Assessment of myocardial angiogenesis and vascularity in small animal models. Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) 2010. PMID: 20680818


  44. Yeghiazarians Y, Zhang Y, Prasad M, Shih H, Saini SA, Takagawa J, Sievers RE, Wong ML, Kapasi NK, Mirsky R, Koskenvuo J, Minasi P, Ye J, Viswanathan MN, Angeli FS, Boyle AJ, Springer ML, Grossman W. Injection of bone marrow cell extract into infarcted hearts results in functional improvement comparable to intact cell therapy. Volume 17 of Issue 7. 2009. PMID: 19384293


  45. Li X, Tjwa M, Van Hove I, Enholm B, Neven E, Paavonen K, Jeltsch M, Juan TD, Sievers RE, Chorianopoulos E, Wada H, Vanwildemeersch M, Noel A, Foidart JM, Springer ML, von Degenfeld G, Dewerchin M, Blau HM, Alitalo K, Eriksson U, Carmeliet P, Moons L. Reevaluation of the role of VEGF-B suggests a restricted role in the revascularization of the ischemic myocardium. Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology 2008. PMID: 18511699


  46. Heiss C, Amabile N, Lee AC, Real WM, Schick SF, Lao D, Wong ML, Jahn S, Angeli FS, Minasi P, Springer ML, Hammond SK, Glantz SA, Grossman W, Balmes JR, Yeghiazarians Y. Brief secondhand smoke exposure depresses endothelial progenitor cells activity and endothelial function: sustained vascular injury and blunted nitric oxide production. Volume 51 of Issue 18. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 2008. PMID: 18452782


  47. Heiss C, Wong ML, Block VI, Lao D, Real WM, Yeghiazarians Y, Lee RJ, Springer ML. Pleiotrophin induces nitric oxide dependent migration of endothelial progenitor cells. Journal of cellular physiology 2008. PMID: 17960557


  49. Heiss C, Sievers RE, Amabile N, Momma TY, Chen Q, Natarajan S, Yeghiazarians Y, Springer ML. In vivo measurement of flow-mediated vasodilation in living rats using high-resolution ultrasound. American journal of physiology. Heart and circulatory physiology 2007. PMID: 18055528


  50. Christian Heiss, Richard E Sievers, Nicolas Amabile, Tony Y Momma, Shobha Natarajan, Yerem Yeghiazarians, Matthew L Springer. Abstract 1421: In Vivo Measurement of Flow-Mediated Vasodilation in Living Rats using High Resolution Ultrasound: Age-Dependent Endothelial Dysfunction. Circulation 2007. PMID:


  51. Takagawa J, Zhang Y, Wong ML, Sievers RE, Kapasi NK, Wang Y, Yeghiazarians Y, Lee RJ, Grossman W, Springer ML. Myocardial infarct size measurement in the mouse chronic infarction model: comparison of area- and length-based approaches. Volume 102 of Issue 6. 2007. PMID: 17347379


  52. Springer ML, Banfi A, Ye J, von Degenfeld G, Kraft PE, Saini SA, Kapasi NK, Blau HM. Localization of vascular response to VEGF is not dependent on heparin binding. FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology 2007. PMID: 17325231


  53. Zhang Y, Takagawa J, Sievers RE, Khan MF, Viswanathan MN, Springer ML, Foster E, Yeghiazarians Y. Validation of the wall motion score and myocardial performance indexes as novel techniques to assess cardiac function in mice after myocardial infarction. American journal of physiology. Heart and circulatory physiology 2006. PMID: 17028161


  54. Springer ML. A balancing act: therapeutic approaches for the modulation of angiogenesis. Current opinion in investigational drugs (London, England : 2000) 2006. PMID: 16555684


  55. von Degenfeld G, Banfi A, Springer ML, Wagner RA, Jacobi J, Ozawa CR, Merchant MJ, Cooke JP, Blau HM. Microenvironmental VEGF distribution is critical for stable and functional vessel growth in ischemia FASEBJ 2006. PMID:


  56. Kamba T, Tam BY, Hashizume H, Haskell A, Sennino B, Mancuso MR, Norberg SM, O'Brien SM, Davis RB, Gowen LC, Anderson KD, Thurston G, Joho S, Springer ML, Kuo CJ, McDonald DM. VEGF-dependent plasticity of fenestrated capillaries in the normal adult microvasculature. American journal of physiology. Heart and circulatory physiology 2005. PMID: 16172168


  57. Springer ML, Sievers RE, Viswanathan MN, Yee MS, Foster E, Grossman W, Yeghiazarians Y. Closed-chest cell injections into mouse myocardium guided by high-resolution echocardiography. Volume 289 of Issue 3. American journal of physiology. Heart and circulatory physiology 2005. PMID: 15908468


  58. Ozawa CR, Banfi A, Glazer NL, Thurston G, Springer ML, Kraft PE, McDonald DM, Blau HM. Microenvironmental VEGF concentration, not total dose, determines a threshold between normal and aberrant angiogenesis. The Journal of clinical investigation 2004. PMID: 14966561


  59. von Degenfeld G, Banfi A, Springer ML, Blau HM. Myoblast-mediated gene transfer for therapeutic angiogenesis and arteriogenesis. British journal of pharmacology 2003. PMID: 14534145


  60. Springer ML, Ozawa CR, Banfi A, Kraft PE, Ip TK, Brazelton TR, Blau HM. Localized arteriole formation directly adjacent to the site of VEGF-induced angiogenesis in muscle. Molecular therapy : the journal of the American Society of Gene Therapy 2003. PMID: 12727106


  61. Munz B, Hildt E, Springer ML, Blau HM. RIP2, a checkpoint in myogenic differentiation. Molecular and cellular biology 2002. PMID: 12138198


  63. Springer ML. VEGF therapy in heart disease: for better or for worse? Drug discovery today 2002. PMID: 11839510


  64. Springer ML, Rando TA, Blau HM. Gene delivery to muscle. Current protocols in human genetics 2002. PMID: 18428326


  65. Banfi A, Springer ML, Blau HM. Myoblast-mediated gene transfer for therapeutic angiogenesis. Methods in enzymology 2002. PMID: 11883066


  66. Springer ML, Brazelton TR, Blau HM. Not the usual suspects: the unexpected sources of tissue regeneration. The Journal of clinical investigation 2001. PMID: 11390416


  67. Lee RJ, Springer ML, Blanco-Bose WE, Shaw R, Ursell PC, Blau HM. VEGF gene delivery to myocardium: deleterious effects of unregulated expression. Circulation 2000. PMID: 10952959


  68. Springer ML, Hortelano G, Bouley DM, Wong J, Kraft PE, Blau HM. Induction of angiogenesis by implantation of encapsulated primary myoblasts expressing vascular endothelial growth factor. The journal of gene medicine 2000. PMID: 10953919


  69. Ozawa CR, Springer ML, Blau HM. A novel means of drug delivery: myoblast-mediated gene therapy and regulatable retroviral vectors. Annual review of pharmacology and toxicology 2000. PMID: 10836138


  70. Springer ML, Ip TK, Blau HM. Angiogenesis monitored by perfusion with a space-filling microbead suspension. Molecular therapy : the journal of the American Society of Gene Therapy 2000. PMID: 10933915


  71. Ozawa CR, Springer ML, Blau HM. Ex vivo gene therapy using myoblasts and regulatable retroviral vectors In Gene Therapy: Therapeutic Mechanisms and Strategies, NS Templeton and DD Lasic, eds. 2000. PMID:


  72. Abendroth A, Slobedman B, Springer ML, Blau HM, Arvin AM. Analysis of immune responses to varicella zoster viral proteins induced by DNA vaccination. Antiviral research 1999. PMID: 10651069


  73. Springer ML, Chen AS, Kraft PE, Bednarski M, Blau HM. VEGF gene delivery to muscle: potential role for vasculogenesis in adults. Molecular cell 1998. PMID: 9844628


  74. Springer ML, Kraft PE, Blau HM. Inhibition of solid tumor growth by Fas ligand-expressing myoblasts. Somatic cell and molecular genetics 1998. PMID: 10696236


  75. Kang SM, Hoffmann A, Le D, Springer ML, Stock PG, Blau HM. Immune response and myoblasts that express Fas ligand. Science (New York, N.Y.) 1997. PMID: 9411754


  76. Springer ML, Blau HM. High-efficiency retroviral infection of primary myoblasts. Somatic cell and molecular genetics 1997. PMID: 9330631


  77. Springer, ML. Towards a treatment for Tay-Sachs disease Molec. Med. Today 1996. PMID:


  78. Blau HM, Springer ML. Muscle-mediated gene therapy. The New England journal of medicine 1995. PMID: 7477172


  79. Blau HM, Springer ML. Gene therapy--a novel form of drug delivery. The New England journal of medicine 1995. PMID: 7565977


  80. Springer, ML. Cell implantation treatment for MPS VII Molec. Med. Today 1995. PMID:


  81. Springer, ML. Gene therapy for restenosis: retinoblastoma to the rescue Molec. Med. Today 1995. PMID:


  82. Springer ML, Patterson B, Spudich JA. Stage-specific requirement for myosin II during Dictyostelium development. Development (Cambridge, England) 1994. PMID: 7956839


  83. Springer ML. Genetic control of fungal differentiation: the three sporulation pathways of Neurospora crassa. BioEssays : news and reviews in molecular, cellular and developmental biology 1993. PMID: 8357339


  84. Springer ML, Hager KM, Garrett-Engele C, Yanofsky C. Timing of synthesis and cellular localization of two conidiation-specific proteins of Neurospora crassa. Developmental biology 1992. PMID: 1386581


  85. Springer ML, Yanofsky C. Expression of con genes along the three sporulation pathways of Neurospora crassa. Genes & development 1992. PMID: 1534304


  86. Springer, ML. Tergitol-induced colonial growth without inhibition of conidiation Fungal Genet. Newsl. 1991. PMID:


  87. Springer ML, Yanofsky C. A morphological and genetic analysis of conidiophore development in Neurospora crassa. Genes & development 1989. PMID: 2524423