
Chair, Department of Pathology
Professor, Department of Pathology
Biosketch
Richard Vander Heide, MD, Ph.D., MBA is the Chair of Pathology at Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine. He is a graduate of Calvin University in Grand Rapids (BS) and Northwestern University Medical School, Chicago, Illinois. He completed his residency in Pathology and Cardiovascular Fellowship at Duke University. Following completion of his training, Dr. Vander Heide took a position at Wayne State University where he was Director of the Autopsy Service and won several awards for his teaching of medical students as well as directing the ACGME approved Pathology residency training program. In 2000, he became the leader of the Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Service at the John D. Dingell VA Medical Center. In 2009 he was awarded the Jack P. Strong endowed Chair of Pathology at LSU Medical School in New Orleans, LA. During his time at LSU he published some of the first United States autopsy reports of the COVID-19 pandemic. He served at LSU until 2021 when he became the Service Line Medical Director/Chair of Pathology at the Marshfield Clinic in Wisconsin overseeing a large rural laboratory operation. His clinical, teaching, and research interests include medical education and cardiovascular pathology.
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Education and Training
- MBA 2016, University of Michigan Ross School of Business
- Fellowship 1993, Cardiovascular Pathology, Duke University Medical Center
- Residency 1993, Pathology, Duke University Medical Center
- Research Fellowship 1993, Cardiovascular Pathology, Duke University Medical Center
- MD 1989, Northwestern University Medical School
- PhD 1986, Experimental Pathology, Northwestern University
- BS 1981, Calvin University
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Research
- cardiovascular pathology
- Regulation of myocyte function by integrins
- Myocarditis
- Myocardial Ischemia
- Covid
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Publications
Patterson B.K., Yogendra R., Francisco E.B., Guevara-Coto J., Long E., Pise A., Osgood E., Bream J., Kreimer M., Jeffers D., Beaty C., Vander Heide R., Mora-Rodríguez R.A. Detection of S1 spike protein in CD16+ monocytes up to 245 days in SARS-CoV-2-negative post-COVID-19 vaccine syndrome (PCVS) individuals Human Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics. 2025;21(1)
Rhodes R.H., Love G.L., Da Silva Lameira F., Sadough Shahmirzadi M., Fox S.E., Vander Heide R.S. Acute neutrophilic vasculitis (leukocytoclasia) in 36 COVID-19 autopsy brains Diagnostic Pathology. 2024;19(1)
Righi F.A., Vander Heide R.S., Graham R.P., Aubry M.C., Trejo-Lopez J.A., Bois M.C., Roden A.C., Reichard R., Maleszewski J.J., Alexander M.P., Quinton R.A., Jenkins S.M., Hartley C.P., Hagen C.E. A case-control autopsy series of liver pathology associated with novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Annals of Diagnostic Pathology. 2024;68
Fox S.E., Heide R.S.V. “Role of Cardiac Inflammation in the Pathology of COVID-19; relationship to the current definition of myocarditis” Cardiovascular Pathology. 2022;59
Miller D.V., Watson K.E., Wang H., Fyfe-Kirschner B., Heide R.S.V. Racially related risk factors for cardiovascular disease: society for cardiovascular pathology symposium 2022 Cardiovascular Pathology. 2022;61
Saddic L., Orosco A., Guo D., Milewicz D.M., Troxlair D., Heide R.V., Herrington D., Wang Y., Azizzadeh A., Parker S.J. Proteomic analysis of descending thoracic aorta identifies unique and universal signatures of aneurysm and dissection Jvs Vascular Science. 2022;3:85-181.
Vander Heide R.S. Diffuse mononuclear inflammatory response to COVID-19: friendly fire or smoldering enemy? Cardiovascular Pathology. 2022;58
Dean M.J., Ochoa J.B., Sanchez-Pino M.D., Zabaleta J., Garai J., Del Valle L., Wyczechowska D., Baiamonte L.B., Philbrook P., Majumder R., Vander Heide R.S., Dunkenberger L., Thylur R.P., Nossaman B., Roberts W.M., Chapple A.G., Wu J., Hicks C., Collins J., Luke B., Johnson R., Koul H.K., Rees C.A., Morris C.R., Garcia-Diaz J., Ochoa A.C. Severe COVID-19 Is Characterized by an Impaired Type I Interferon Response and Elevated Levels of Arginase Producing Granulocytic Myeloid Derived Suppressor Cells Frontiers in Immunology. 2021;12
Fahd Qadir M.M., Bhondeley M., Beatty W., Gaupp D.D., Doyle-Meyers L.A., Fischer T., Bandyopadhyay I., Blair R.V., Bohm R., Rappaport J., Lazartigues E., Vander Heide R.S., Kolls J.K., Qin X., Mauvais-Jarvis F. SARS-CoV-2 infection of the pancreas promotes thrombofibrosis and is associated with new-onset diabetes Jci Insight. 2021;6(16)
Fox S.E., Falgout L., Vander Heide R.S. COVID-19 myocarditis: quantitative analysis of the inflammatory infiltrate and a proposed mechanism Cardiovascular Pathology. 2021;54
Fox S.E., Heide R.S.V. COVID-19: The Heart of the Matter—Pathological Changes and a Proposed Mechanism Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology and Therapeutics. 2021;26(3):217-224.
Halushka M.K., Vander Heide R.S. Myocarditis is rare in COVID-19 autopsies: cardiovascular findings across 277 postmortem examinations Cardiovascular Pathology. 2021;50
Jorgensen M., Joseph P., Posgai A.L., Vander Heide R.S., Kusmartseva I., Atkinson M.A. ACE2 chromogenic immunostaining protocol optimized for formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded human tissue sections STAR Protocols. 2021;2(3)
Liu F., Han K., Blair R., Kenst K., Qin Z., Upcin B., Wörsdörfer P., Midkiff C.C., Mudd J., Belyaeva E., Milligan N.S., Rorison T.D., Wagner N., Bodem J., Dölken L., Aktas B.H., Vander Heide R.S., Yin X.M., Kolls J.K., Roy C.J., Rappaport J., Ergün S., Qin X. SARS-CoV-2 Infects Endothelial Cells In Vivo and In Vitro Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology. 2021;11
O'Donnell C.J., Schwartz Longacre L., Cohen B.E., Fayad Z.A., Gillespie C.F., Liberzon I., Pathak G.A., Polimanti R., Risbrough V., Ursano R.J., Vander Heide R.S., Yancy C.W., Vaccarino V., Sopko G., Stein M.B. Posttraumatic stress disorder and cardiovascular disease: State of the science, knowledge gaps, and research opportunities JAMA Cardiology. 2021;6(10):1207-1216.
Qin Z., Liu F., Blair R., Wang C., Yang H., Mudd J., Currey J.M., Iwanaga N., He J., Mi R., Han K., Midkiff C.C., Alam M.A., Aktas B.H., Heide R.S.V., Veazey R., Piedimonte G., Maness N.J., Ergün S., Mauvais-Jarvis F., Rappaport J., Kolls J.K., Qin X. Endothelial cell infection and dysfunction, immune activation in severe COVID-19 Theranostics. 2021;11(16):8076-8091.
Risher W., Stevenson S., Danrad R., Kerut E.K., Batson R., Bhalla R., Vander Heide R., Hollier L.H. Unusual complication of late presentation deceleration aortic injury Echocardiography. 2021;38(4):701-704.
Fox S.E., Akmatbekov A., Harbert J.L., Li G., Quincy Brown J., Vander Heide R.S. Pulmonary and cardiac pathology in African American patients with COVID-19: an autopsy series from New Orleans Lancet Respiratory Medicine. 2020;8(7):681-686.
Fox S.E., Lameira F.S., Rinker E.B., Vander Heide R.S. Cardiac endotheliitis and multisystem inflammatory syndrome after COVID-19 Annals of Internal Medicine. 2020;173(12):1025-1027.
Fox S.E., Li G., Akmatbekov A., Harbert J.L., Lameira F.S., Brown J.Q., Heide R.S.V. Unexpected Features of Cardiac Pathology in COVID-19 Infection Circulation. 2020;142(11):1123-1125.
Han B., Bhalla R., da Silva Lameira F., Heide R.S.V., Love G.L. Coronavirus disease 2019 autopsies and personal protective equipment Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. 2020;144(11):1295.
Kusmartseva I., Wu W., Syed F., Van Der Heide V., Jorgensen M., Joseph P., Tang X., Candelario-Jalil E., Yang C., Nick H., Harbert J.L., Posgai A.L., Paulsen J.D., Lloyd R., Cechin S., Pugliese A., Campbell-Thompson M., Vander Heide R.S., Evans-Molina C., Homann D., Atkinson M.A. Expression of SARS-CoV-2 Entry Factors in the Pancreas of Normal Organ Donors and Individuals with COVID-19 Cell Metabolism. 2020;32(6):1041-1051.e6.
Parker S.J., Chen L., Spivia W., Saylor G., Mao C., Venkatraman V., Holewinski R.J., Mastali M., Pandey R., Athas G., Yu G., Fu Q., Troxlair D., Vander Heide R., Herrington D., Van Eyk J.E., Wang Y. Identification of Putative Early Atherosclerosis Biomarkers by Unsupervised Deconvolution of Heterogeneous Vascular Proteomes Journal of Proteome Research. 2020;19(7):2794-2806.
Herrington D.M., Mao C., Parker S.J., Fu Z., Yu G., Chen L., Venkatraman V., Fu Y., Wang Y., Howard T.D., Jun G., Zhao C.F., Liu Y., Saylor G., Spivia W.R., Athas G.B., Troxclair D., Hixson J.E., Vander Heide R.S., Wang Y., Van Eyk J.E. Proteomic Architecture of Human Coronary and Aortic Atherosclerosis Circulation. 2018;137(25):2741-2756.
Hixson J.E., Jun G., Shimmin L.C., Wang Y., Yu G., Mao C., Warren A.S., Howard T.D., Heide R.S.V., Van Eyk J., Wang Y., Herrington D.M. Whole Exome Sequencing to Identify Genetic Variants Associated with Raised Atherosclerotic Lesions in Young Persons Scientific Reports. 2017;7(1)
Buja L.M., Vander Heide R.S. Pathobiology of Ischemic Heart Disease: Past, Present and Future Cardiovascular Pathology. 2016;25(3):214-220.
Vander Heide R.S. Mending a broken heart: The role of sarcospan in duchenne muscular dystrophy-associated cardiomyopathy Journal of the American Heart Association. 2015;4(12)
Perricone A.J., Vander Heide R.S. Novel therapeutic strategies for ischemic heart disease Pharmacological Research. 2014;89:36-45.
Fu Z., Yan K., Rosenberg A., Jin Z., Crain B., Athas G., Heide R.S.V., Howard T., Everett A.D., Herrington D., Van Eyk J.E. Improved protein extraction and protein identification from archival formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded human aortas Proteomics Clinical Applications. 2013;7(3-4):217-224.
Heide R.S.V., Steenbergen C. Cardioprotection and myocardial reperfusion: Pitfalls to clinical application Circulation Research. 2013;113(4):464-477.
Perricone A.J., Bivona B.J., Jackson F.R., Heide R.S.V. Conditional knockout of myocyte focal adhesion kinase abrogates ischemic preconditioning in adult murine hearts Journal of the American Heart Association. 2013;2(5)
Lillvis J.H., Erdman R., Schworer C.M., Golden A., Derr K., Gatalica Z., Cox L.A., Shen J., Vander Heide R.S., Lenk G.M., Hlavaty L., Li L., Elmore J.R., Franklin D.P., Gray J.L., Garvin R.P., Carey D.J., Lancaster W.D., Tromp G., Kuivaniemi H. Regional expression of HOXA4 along the aorta and its potential role in human abdominal aortic aneurysms BMC Physiology. 2011;11(1)
Schwartz Longacre L., Kloner R.A., Arai A.E., Baines C.P., Bolli R., Braunwald E., Downey J., Gibbons R.J., Gottlieb R.A., Heusch G., Jennings R.B., Lefer D.J., Mentzer R.M., Murphy E., Ovize M., Ping P., Przyklenk K., Sack M.N., Vander Heide R.S., Vinten-Johansen J., Yellon D.M. New horizons in cardioprotection: Recommendations from the 2010 national heart, lung, and blood institute workshop Circulation. 2011;124(10):1172-1179.
Undyala V., Terlecky S.R., Vander Heide R.S. Targeted intracellular catalase delivery protects neonatal rat myocytes from hypoxia-reoxygenation and ischemia-reperfusion injury Cardiovascular Pathology. 2011;20(5):272-280.
Vander Heide R. Clinically useful cardioprotection: Ischemic preconditioning then and now Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology and Therapeutics. 2011;16(3-4):251-254.
Wei H., Vander Heide R.S. Ischemic preconditioning and heat shock activate Akt via a focal adhesion kinase-mediated pathway in Langendorff-perfused adult rat hearts American Journal of Physiology Heart and Circulatory Physiology. 2010;298(1):H152-H157.
Heide R.V. The Cell in health and disease Garner and Klintworth S Pathobiology of Ocular Disease Third Edition. 2008:1-28.
Walsh M.F., Ampasala D.R., Hatfield J., Vander Heide R., Suer S., Rishi A.K., Basson M.D. Transforming growth factor-β stimulates intestinal epithelial focal adhesion kinase synthesis via Smad- and p38-dependent mechanisms American Journal of Pathology. 2008;173(2):385-399.
Wei H., Vander Heide R.S. Heat stress activates AKT via focal adhesion kinase-mediated pathway in neonatal rat ventricular myocytes American Journal of Physiology Heart and Circulatory Physiology. 2008;295(2):H561-H568.
Heide R.V. The cell in health and disease Garner and Klintworth S Pathobiology of Ocular Disease Part A. 2007:1-28.
Vander Heide R.S., L'Ecuyer T.J. Molecular basis of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity Heart and Metabolism. 2007(35):4.
L'Ecuyer T., Sanjeev S., Thomas R., Novak R., Das L., Campbell W., Vander Heide R. DNA damage is an early event in doxorubicin-induced cardiac myocyte death American Journal of Physiology Heart and Circulatory Physiology. 2006;291(3):H1273-H1280.
Spears J.R., Prcevski P., Jiang A., Brereton G.J., Vander Heide R. Intracoronary aqueous oxygen perfusion, performed 24 h after the onset of postinfarction reperfusion, experimentally reduces infarct size and improves left ventricular function International Journal of Cardiology. 2006;113(3):371-375.
Wei H., Campbell W., Vander Heide R.S. Heat shock-induced cardioprotection activates cytoskeletal-based cell survival pathways American Journal of Physiology Heart and Circulatory Physiology. 2006;291(2):H638-H647.
Sharif Z., Hammond R.L., McDonald P., Vander Heide R., Stephenson L.W. The functional and histological effects of clenbuterol on the canine skeletal muscle ventricle Journal of Surgical Research. 2005;123(1):89-95.
L'Ecuyer T., Allebban Z., Thomas R., Vander Heide R. Glutathione S-transferase overexpression protects against anthracycline-induced H9C2 cell death American Journal of Physiology Heart and Circulatory Physiology. 2004;286(6 55-6):H2057-H2064.
Spears J.R., Prcevski P., Xu R., Li L., Brereton G., Dicarli M., Spanta A., Crilly R., Lavine S., Vander Heide R. Aqueous Oxygen Attenuation of Reperfusion Microvascular Ischemia in a Canine Model of Myocardial Infarction ASAIO Journal. 2003;49(6):716-720.
Wei H., L'Ecuyer T., Vander Heide R.S. Effect of increased expression of cytoskeletal protein vinculin on ischemia-reperfusion injury in ventricular myocytes American Journal of Physiology Heart and Circulatory Physiology. 2003;284(3 53-3):H911-H918.
Spears J.R., Henney C., Prcevski P., Xu R., Li L., Brereton G.J., DiCarli M., Spanta A., Crilly R., Sulaiman A.M., Hadeed S., Lavine S., Patterson W.R., Creech J., Vander Heide R. Aqueous oxygen hyperbaric reperfusion in a porcine model of myocardial infarction Journal of Invasive Cardiology. 2002;14(4):160-166.
Vander Heide R.S. Increased expression of HSP27 protects canine myocytes from simulated ischemia-reperfusion injury American Journal of Physiology Heart and Circulatory Physiology. 2002;282(3 51-3):H935-H941.
L'Ecuyer T., Horenstein M.S., Thomas R., Vander Heide R. Anthracycline-induced cardiac injury using a cardiac cell line: Potential for gene therapy studies Molecular Genetics and Metabolism. 2001;74(3):370-379.
Di Carli M., Prcevski P., Singh T., Janisse J., Ager J., Muzik O., Vander Heide R. Myocardial blood flow, function, and metabolism in repetitive stunning Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 2000;41(7):1227-1234.
Horenstein M.S., Vander Heide R.S., L'Ecuyer T.J. Molecular basis of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity and its prevention Molecular Genetics and Metabolism. 2000;71(1-2):436-444.
Keller L., Vander Heide R., Pebbles K., L'Ecuyer T. Percutaneous pulmonary artery gene transfer in pigs using naked plasmid DNA delivered during angioplasty Pediatric Cardiology. 2000;21(3):223-227.
Hlavaty L., Heide R.V. Causes of isolated aortic insufficiency in an urban population in the 1990s: A review of 56 surgical pathology cases Cardiovascular Pathology. 1998;7(6):313-319.
Schwartz L.M., Verbinski S.G., Vander Heide R.S., Reimer K.A. Epicardial temperature is a major predictor of myocardial infarct size in dogs Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. 1997;29(6):1577-1583.
Papagiannis J., Kanter R., Vander Heide R., Reimer K., Ungerleider R., Van Praagh R. Isolated innominate artery in asplenia syndrome with aortic atresia: Newly recognized cardiovascular complex American Heart Journal. 1996;131(5):1042-1044.
Vander Heide R.S., Delyani J.A., Jennings R.B., Reimer K.A., Steenbergen C. Reducing lactate accumulation does not attenuate lethal ischemic injury in isolated perfused rat hearts American Journal of Physiology Heart and Circulatory Physiology. 1996;270(1 39-1):H38-H44.
Vander Heide R.S., Hill M.L., Reimer K.A., Jennings R.B. Effect of reversible ischemia on the activity of the mitochondrial ATPase: Relationship to ischemic preconditioning Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. 1996;28(1):103-112.
Vander Heide R.S., Reimer K.A. Effect of adenosine therapy at reperfusion on myocardial infarct size in dogs Cardiovascular Research. 1996;31(5):711-718.
Vander Heide R.S., Schwartz L.M., Jennings R.B., Reimer K.A. Effect of catecholamine depletion on myocardial infarct size in dogs: Role of catecholamines in ischemic preconditioning Cardiovascular Research. 1995;30(5):656-662.
Vander Heide R.S., Schwartz L.M., Reimer K.A. The novel calcium antagonist Ro 40-5967 limits myocardial infarct size in the dog Cardiovascular Research. 1994;28(10):1526-1532.
Anstadt M., Tedder S., Vander Heide R., Tedder M., Hilleren D., Sostman H., Reimer K., Lowe J. Cardiac pathology following resuscitative circulatory support: Direct mechanical ventricular actuation versus cardiopulmonary bypass ASAIO Journal. 1992;38(2):75-81.
Vander Heide R., Rim D., Hohl C., Ganote C. An in vitro model of myocardial ischemia utilizing isolated adult rat myocytes Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. 1990;22(2):165-181.
Ganote C., Vander Heide R. Cytoskeletal lesions in anoxic myocardial injury. A conventional and high-voltage electron-microscopic and immunofluorescence study American Journal of Pathology. 1987;129(2):327-344.
Vander Heide R., Ganote C. Increased myocyte fragility following anoxic injury Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. 1987;19(11):1085-1103.
Vander Heide R.S., Sobotka P.A., Ganote C.E. Effects of the free radical scavenger DMTU and mannitol on the oxygen paradox in perfused rat hearts Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. 1987;19(6):615-625.
Ganote C., Vander Heide R. Morphologic aspects of reperfusion injury Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. 1986;18(SUPPL. 4):23-26.
Samarel A.M., Ferguson A.G., Vander Heide R.S., Davison R., Ganote C.E. Release of unassembled rat cardiac myosin light chain 1 following the calcium paradox Circulation Research. 1986;58(1):166-171.
Vander Heide R., Altschuld R., Lamka K., Ganote C. Modification of caffeine-induced injury in Ca2+-free perfused rat hearts. Relationship to the calcium paradox American Journal of Pathology. 1986;123(2):351-364.
Vander Heide R., Angelo J., Altschuld R., Ganote C. Energy dependence of contraction band formation in perfused hearts and isolated adult myocytes American Journal of Pathology. 1986;125(1):55-68.
Altschuld R.A., Wenger W.C., Lamka K.G., Kindig O.R., Capen C.C., Mizuhira V., Vander Heide R.S., Brierley G.P. Structural and functional properties of adult rat heart myocytes lysed with digitonin Journal of Biological Chemistry. 1985;260(26):14325-14334.
Samarel A., Ferguson A., Vander Heide R. Release of rat cardiac myosin light chain 1 during the calcium paradox Federation Proceedings. 1985;44(5)
Vander Heide R., Ganote C. Caffeine-induced myocardial injury in calcium-free perfused rat hearts American Journal of Pathology. 1985;118(1):55-65.
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Presentations
- Cases of Cardiovascular-itis: Inflammatory Conditions involving the Cardiovascular System: Myocarditis. Vander Heide, R, USCAP Meeting, Baltimore, MD, 03/2024
- Pandemic Pathology: Critical Acute and Long-term Findings from COVID-19 Autopsies. Vander Heide, R, USCAP Meeting, New Orleans, LA, 03/2023
- Pandemic Pathology: Critical Acute and Long-term Findings from COVID-19 Autopsies. Vander Heide, R, USCAP Meeting, Los Angeles, CA, 03/2022
- Racial Differences in Cardiovascular Complications Due to COVID-19: An Autopsy-based perspective. Vander Heide, R, USCAP Meeting, Los Angeles, CA, 03/2022
- COVID-19 Pathology: Findings from COVID-19 autopsies and implications for chronic disease?. Vander Heide, R, College of American Pathology Meeting, Chicago, IL, 06/2021
- ASIP COVID-19 Panel Discussion: Toward Understanding and Containing the COVID-19 Pandemic. Vander Heide, R, American Association of Investigative Pathology (ASIP), virtual, virtual, 04/2021
- Lessons in histopathology from COVID-19â Invited lecture presentation. Vander Heide, R, USCAP, College of American Pathology (CAP) companion meeting, virtual, virtual, 03/2021
- The heart of COVID-19. Vander Heide, R, USCAP Meeting 2021, American Society of Investigative Pathology companion meeting, virtual, virtual, 03/2021
- Insights from Autopsy-Based Clinicopathological Correlation of COVID-19: Pathology, Mechanisms, and Treatment Strategies. Vander Heide, R, American Association of Investigative Pathology (ASIP), virtual, virtual, 03/2021
- Unexpected cardiac features in Covid-19 infection. Vander Heide, R, International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR), virtual, virtual, 11/2020
- Autopsy insights into the pathogenesis of COVD-19. Vander Heide, R, American Association of Investigative Pathology (ASIP), virtual, virtual, 06/2020
- To Be or Not to Be: The role of FAK in ischemic-reperfusion injury. Vander Heide, R, 5th Annual GW-ICC Conference, Beijing, China, 10/2014