Clintoria R. Williams, Ph.D., FAHA, is part of an up-and-coming group of biomedical researchers. She has been featured on the cover of The Physiologist Magazine, an international publication of the American Physiological Society. This is one of many achievements for Williams, who made national and international news with her research that has linked zinc deficiency to high blood pressure.
The Physiologist Magazine named Williams as among the “now” generation of scientific researchers. Her research has been published in the American Journal of Physiology – Renal Physiology, and her lab’s findings have been featured in articles by Science Daily, Medical News Today, Cardiovascular Business, and The Health Site, among others.
Williams gained recognition through her experiments and data generation, which earned her a National Institutes of Health scholarship and Minority Access to Research Careers for Undergraduate Students Training in Academic Research (MARC U* STAR).
“Taking biology lab courses as an undergraduate student birthed an appreciation of science and the interesting and provocative questions that remained unanswered,” Williams said.
Williams is an assistant professor in the Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology, and Physiology and the director of the Small Animal Physiology Core. She has been with Wright State since 2018 and has played an integral part in helping her students grow into competent, effective researchers. She works hard to raise marginalized voices within medicine.
Williams’ research is centered around cellular and molecular physiology, vascular pathophysiology, and renal pathophysiology. She has published 16 articles on a variety of topics including the role of immunosuppressive drugs in causing cancer and kidney disease, the effect of zinc on the kidneys, and the effect of nutritional intervention on kidney health.
Williams’ research examines hypertension, a major risk factor in chronic kidney disease progression, which leads to end-stage kidney failure. Uncontrolled blood pressure is still present in almost 90 percent of chronic kidney disease patients despite the availability of several types of drugs that combat hypertension. To combat this, Williams’ lab has worked to identify cellular and molecular mechanisms that drive hypertensive kidney damage. Exploiting the underlying mechanisms could serve as the foundation for new treatments and drug targets for both hypertension and kidney disease as a whole.
Chronic kidney disease and hypertension are frequently accompanied by a deficiency in zinc, which can have negative consequences on the cardiovascular system and inflict further damage to the renal system. Williams’ research determined that hypertension induced by zinc deficiency is a consequence of kidney dysfunction. Specifically, Williams has found that dietary zinc restriction in animals promotes hypertension by driving renal sodium retention. This was reversed by replenishing the diet with zinc. These significant findings establish the physiological role of zinc in blood pressure control and highlight a novel approach to blood pressure management.
Currently, Williams works with a team of undergraduate, M.D., and Ph.D. students to assist with research. Williams’ philosophy of “lifting while she climbs” has enabled her to help K–12 students along with her research team. Williams’ students have won scientific poster awards and travel awards to national scientific meetings. Her students have significantly contributed to a variety of publications. Williams said that seeing her students succeed is encouraging. She is looking forward to continuing to work alongside others to increase diversity, inclusion, and equity in the scientific community.
Williams said that her long-term research goal is to reverse or prevent hypertension and slow chronic kidney disease. Her lab has pioneered the understanding of zinc’s role as a diet-related regulator of renal blood pressure homeostasis.
Alongside her students, Williams has worked to study calcineurin inhibitors, a vital immunosuppressive therapy in the management of conditions that could cause inflammation. Calcineurin inhibitors often cause major side effects that can lead to kidney damage and hypertension. Williams’ research has found that calcineurin is not a singular protein with a singular function. By selectively modulating calcineurin’s activity, it could be possible to preserve the kidneys while maintaining immunosuppression.
To Williams, research is only half of her passion. She is also incredibly dedicated to bringing minority voices and perspectives to research and development of treatment. She is currently the president of Black in Physiology Inc., a nonprofit organization that promotes Black scientists in physiology-related fields. The group encourages conversations around diversity and inclusion in the field of physiology. Additionally, she is the president of the Dayton American Heart Association.
In 2017, she was a participant in the Research Leaders Academy for the American Heart Association. She was named a fellow of the American Heart Association and served on the Council on the Kidney in Cardiovascular Disease.
Along with her appointed positions, she has also received a variety of awards. In 2017, she received the PhUn Week Five-Year Participant award from the American Physiological Society. In 2020, she was granted the Faculty Award for Excellence in Early Career Achievement by Wright State University. In 2021, she received the Renal Section Young Investigator Excellence in Research Award from the American Physiological Society.—Lisa Coffey ia R. Williams, Ph.D., FAHA, is part of an up-and-coming group of biomedical researchers. She has been featured on the cover of The Physiologist Magazine, an international publication of the American Physiological Society. This is one of many achievements for Williams, who made national and international news with her research that has linked zinc deficiency to high blood pressure.
The Physiologist Magazine named Williams as among the “now” generation of scientific researchers. Her research has been published in the American Journal of Physiology – Renal Physiology, and her lab’s findings have been featured in articles by Science Daily, Medical News Today, Cardiovascular Business, and The Health Site, among others.
Williams gained recognition through her experiments and data generation, which earned her a National Institutes of Health scholarship and Minority Access to Research Careers for Undergraduate Students Training in Academic Research (MARC U* STAR).
“Taking biology lab courses as an undergraduate student birthed an appreciation of science and the interesting and provocative questions that remained unanswered,” Williams said.
Williams is an assistant professor in the Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology, and Physiology and the director of the Small Animal Physiology Core. She has been with Wright State since 2018 and has played an integral part in helping her students grow into competent, effective researchers. She works to raise marginalized voices within medicine.
Williams’ research is centered around cellular and molecular physiology, vascular pathophysiology, and renal pathophysiology. She has published 16 articles on topics including the role of immunosuppressive drugs in causing cancer and kidney disease, the effect of zinc on the kidneys, and the effect of nutritional intervention on kidney health.
Williams’ research examines hypertension, a major risk factor in chronic kidney disease progression, which leads to end-stage kidney failure. Uncontrolled blood pressure is still present in almost 90 percent of chronic kidney disease patients despite the availability of several types of drugs that combat hypertension. To combat this, Williams’ lab has worked to identify cellular and molecular mechanisms that drive hypertensive kidney damage. Exploiting the underlying mechanisms could serve as the foundation for new treatments and drug targets for both hypertension and kidney disease as a whole.
Chronic kidney disease and hypertension are frequently accompanied by a deficiency in zinc, which can have negative consequences on the cardiovascular system and inflict further damage to the renal system. Williams’ research determined that hypertension induced by zinc deficiency is a consequence of kidney dysfunction. Specifically, Williams has found that dietary zinc restriction in animals promotes hypertension by driving renal sodium retention. This was reversed by replenishing the diet with zinc. These significant findings establish the physiological role of zinc in blood pressure control and highlight a novel approach to blood pressure management.
Currently, Williams works with a team of undergraduate and doctoral students to assist with research. Williams’ philosophy of “lifting while she climbs” has enabled her to help K–12 students along with her research team. Williams’ students have won scientific poster awards and travel awards to national scientific meetings and significantly contributed to a variety of publications. Williams said that seeing her students succeed is encouraging. She is looking forward to continuing to work alongside others to increase diversity, inclusion, and equity in the scientific community.
Williams said her long-term research goal is to reverse or prevent hypertension and slow chronic kidney disease. Her lab has pioneered the understanding of zinc’s role as a diet-related regulator of renal blood pressure homeostasis.
Williams has worked alongside her students to study calcineurin inhibitors, a vital immunosuppressive therapy in the management of conditions that could cause inflammation. Calcineurin inhibitors often cause major side effects that can lead to kidney damage and hypertension. Williams’ research has found that calcineurin is not a singular protein with a singular function. By selectively modulating calcineurin’s activity, it could be possible to preserve the kidneys while maintaining immunosuppression.
To Williams, research is only half of her passion. She is also dedicated to bringing minority voices and perspectives to research and development of treatment. She is currently the president of Black in Physiology Inc., a nonprofit organization that promotes Black scientists in physiology-related fields. The group encourages conversations around diversity and inclusion in the field of physiology. Additionally, she is the president of the Dayton American Heart Association.
In 2017, she was a participant in the Research Leaders Academy for the American Heart Association. She was named a fellow of the American Heart Association and served on the Council on the Kidney in Cardiovascular Disease.
Along with her appointed positions, she has also received a variety of awards. In 2017, she received the PhUn Week Five-Year Participant award from the American Physiological Society. In 2020, she was granted the Faculty’s Award for Excellence in Early Career Achievement by Wright State. In 2021, she received the Renal Section Young Investigator Excellence in Research Award from the American Physiological Society.—MICAH KARR
