Vassilios J. Bezzerides, MD, PhD
Associate Cardiologist, Department of Cardiology
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School
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Vassilios J. Bezzerides, MD, PhD
Associate Cardiologist, Department of Cardiology
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School
Medical Services
Languages
English
Education
Undergraduate School
University of Washington
1998
Seattle
WA
Graduate School
PhD, Biophysics
Harvard University
2004
Cambridge
MA
Medical School
Harvard Medical School
2006
Boston
MA
Internship
Boston Children's Hospital
2009
Boston
MA
Fellowship
Pediatric Cardiology
Boston Children's Hospital
2011
Boston
MA
Fellowship
Cardiac Electrophysiology
Boston Children's Hospital
2013
Boston
MA
Certifications
American Board of Pediatrics (General)
American Board of Pediatrics (Cardiology)
Professional History
I went to the University of Washington in Seattle where I studied physics and biochemistry. I was lucky enough to work on a number of different research projects ranging from high-energy nuclear physics to microgravity. My medical degree and PhD in biophysics are from Harvard Medical and MIT, where I had the opportunity to work with Dr. David Clapham. Following graduation, I did my internship and residency in pediatrics at the Boston Combined Residency Program. It was here, working with patients at Boston Medical Center, that I developed my interest in long-term care of patients and their families.
I completed a fellowship in pediatric cardiology and acquired additional specialized training in electrophysiology and research. I started on staff at Boston Children's Hospital in 2013 as both a clinical electrophysiologist and a basic research scientist in the fields of inherited cardiac disease and arrhythmia. Under the mentorship of Dr. William Pu, I have developed a program to use induced pluripotent stem cells from patients as models of human cardiac disease to improve therapies for patients with inherited arrhythmia disorders.
Approach to Care
Caring for patients is a humbling and tremendous privilege. Working with patients and their families to understand their cardiac condition and devise a management strategy together is a deeply rewarding experience. Understanding each individual patient's story is critically important to providing the highest quality care. This is especially true with patients that have forms of inherited cardiac conditions. Working in the Inherited Cardiac Arrhythmia Program provides a unique opportunity to combine my knowledge of basic cardiovascular science with the latest clinical research to help treat patients with channelopathies and other forms of genetic heart disease. Caring for patients is also tremendously inspiring and directly influences my work as a research scientist to develop novel therapies for patients with inherited cardiac disease.
Publications
Dysregulation of N-terminal acetylation causes cardiac arrhythmia and cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
CHD4 Interacts With TBX5 to Maintain the Gene Regulatory Network of Postnatal Atrial Cardiomyocytes. View Abstract
Cardiac Applications of CRISPR/AAV-Mediated Precise Genome Editing. View Abstract
Antisense Oligonucleotide Therapy for Calmodulinopathy. View Abstract
Management of ultrarare inherited arrhythmia syndromes. View Abstract
CITED4 gene therapy protects against maladaptive cardiac remodeling after ischemia/reperfusion injury in mice. View Abstract
Dysregulation of N-terminal acetylation causes cardiac arrhythmia and cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
Efficient and reproducible generation of human iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes and cardiac organoids in stirred suspension systems. View Abstract
Premature ventricular contractions in children and young adults: natural history and clinical implications. View Abstract
Efficient and reproducible generation of human iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes using a stirred bioreactor. View Abstract
Author Correction: Tbx5 maintains atrial identity in postnatal cardiomyocytes by regulating an atrial-specific enhancer network. View Abstract
Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy and Ventricular Preexcitation in the Young: Cause and Accessory Pathway Characteristics. View Abstract
Medical cardioversion of atrial fibrillation and flutter with class IC antiarrhythmic drugs in young patients with and without congenital heart disease. View Abstract
Tbx5 maintains atrial identity in post-natal cardiomyocytes by regulating an atrial-specific enhancer network. View Abstract
An improved reporter identifies ruxolitinib as a potent and cardioprotective CaMKII inhibitor. View Abstract
Gene Therapy for Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia. View Abstract
Radiofrequency Catheter Ablation for Pediatric Atrioventricular Nodal Reentrant Tachycardia: Impact of Age on Procedural Methods and Durable Success. View Abstract
Population Prevalence of Premature Truncating Variants in Plakophilin-2 and Association With Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy: A UK Biobank Analysis. View Abstract
Pacemaker use for the treatment of reflex-mediated syncope: 40-year experience at a single paediatric institution. View Abstract
Increased Reactive Oxygen Species-Mediated Ca2+/Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase II Activation Contributes to Calcium Handling Abnormalities and Impaired Contraction in Barth Syndrome. View Abstract
Two sides of the same coin: new insights into mechanisms of ventricular fibrillation. View Abstract
Risk Factors for Early Recurrence Following Ablation for Accessory Pathways: The Role of Consolidation Lesions. View Abstract
Drug screening platform using human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived atrial cardiomyocytes and optical mapping. View Abstract
Paediatric/congenital cardiology physician scientists-An endangered species. View Abstract
MICAL1 constrains cardiac stress responses and protects against disease by oxidizing CaMKII. View Abstract
Value of provocative electrophysiology testing in the management of pediatric patients after congenital heart surgery. View Abstract
Gene therapy for inherited arrhythmias. View Abstract
CITED4 Protects Against Adverse Remodeling in Response to Physiological and Pathological Stress. View Abstract
Clinical and Genetic Findings in Children Presenting With Ventricular Fibrillation as the First Manifestation of Cardiovascular Disease. View Abstract
AAV Gene Therapy Prevents and Reverses Heart Failure in a Murine Knockout Model of Barth Syndrome. View Abstract
Low mortality in fetal supraventricular tachycardia: Outcomes in a 30-year single-institution experience. View Abstract
Adverse event rate during inpatient sotalol initiation for the management of supraventricular and ventricular tachycardia in the pediatric and young adult population. View Abstract
Inhibition of mTOR Signaling Enhances Maturation of Cardiomyocytes Derived From Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells via p53-Induced Quiescence. View Abstract
Phenotypic Manifestations of Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy in Children and Adolescents. View Abstract
Insights Into the Pathogenesis of Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia From Engineered Human Heart Tissue. View Abstract
Gene Therapy for Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia by Inhibition of Ca2+/Calmodulin-Dependent Kinase II. View Abstract
Activin type II receptor signaling in cardiac aging and heart failure. View Abstract
Phenotypic Characterization of Individuals With Variants in Cardiovascular Genes in the Absence of a Primary Cardiovascular Indication for Testing. View Abstract
Differentiation of fasciculoventricular fibers from anteroseptal accessory pathways using the surface electrocardiogram. View Abstract
The Real-World Utility of the LINQ Implantable Loop Recorder in Pediatric and Adult Congenital Heart Patients. View Abstract
Dual-Site Ventricular Pacing in Patients With Fontan Physiology and Heart Block: Does it Mitigate the Detrimental Effects of Single-Site Ventricular Pacing? View Abstract
Channelopathy as a SUDEP Biomarker in Dravet Syndrome Patient-Derived Cardiac Myocytes. View Abstract
Utility of incomplete right bundle branch block as an isolated ECG finding in children undergoing initial cardiac evaluation. View Abstract
Low molecular weight heparin as an anticoagulation strategy for left-sided ablation procedures. View Abstract
Genotype-phenotype-guided medical and surgical intervention in long QT syndrome. View Abstract
Mitochondrial Cardiomyopathy Caused by Elevated Reactive Oxygen Species and Impaired Cardiomyocyte Proliferation. View Abstract
Cardiac Events During Competitive, Recreational, and Daily Activities in Children and Adolescents With Long QT Syndrome. View Abstract
Inhibition of serum and glucocorticoid regulated kinase-1 as novel therapy for cardiac arrhythmia disorders. View Abstract
Modeling Inherited Arrhythmia Disorders Using Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes. View Abstract
Pausing With the Gauze: Inhibition of Temporary Pacemakers by Radiofrequency Scan During Cardiac Surgery. View Abstract
Acetylation of VGLL4 Regulates Hippo-YAP Signaling and Postnatal Cardiac Growth. View Abstract
S100A6 Regulates Endothelial Cell Cycle Progression by Attenuating Antiproliferative Signal Transducers and Activators of Transcription 1 Signaling. View Abstract
CITED4 induces physiologic hypertrophy and promotes functional recovery after ischemic injury. View Abstract
miR-222 is necessary for exercise-induced cardiac growth and protects against pathological cardiac remodeling. View Abstract
Phenotypic screen quantifying differential regulation of cardiac myocyte hypertrophy identifies CITED4 regulation of myocyte elongation. View Abstract
Saying yes to exercise and NO to cardiac injury. View Abstract
Rapid vesicular translocation and insertion of TRP channels. View Abstract
SPIE- The International Society for Optical Engineering View Abstract
Mechanism of persistent protein kinase D1 translocation and activation. View Abstract
The effects of buoyancy on sonoluminescing bubbles View Abstract
The search for electrical discharges from single- and multi-bubble sonoluminescence View Abstract
Locations