Hatter Cardiovascular Institute

Lead:  Professor Derek Yellon
PI's: Dr Sean Davidson, Dr Robert Bell

The Hatter Cardiovascular Institute as part of the Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences at University College London is an internationally renowned research centre which undertakes clinical and basic research investigating ways to protect the heart from the damaging effects of an acute myocardial infarction. Its particular areas of interest includes the pathophysiology of cardioprotection in the setting of diabetes, ischaemia/reperfusion injury, molecular aspects of adaptation to ischaemic injury and myocardial conditioning in both the basic and clinical arena. In the basic research setting, the HCI was instrumental is identifying the signalling pathways including the RISK pathway as well as the role of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (MPTP) in cardioprotection. In the clinical setting the HCI was the first to demonstrate the phenomenon of preconditioning in patients and the first to undertake a multicenter outcome study of remote conditioning in patients undergoing CABG surgery. Currently it is pioneering new areas of research including the potential for nanoparticles to support the damaged heart and focusing on highly relevant receptor-medicated cardioprotective signalling pathways. Furthermore there is a direct interest in forms of cell death including necrosis, apoptosis, pyroptosis and necroptosis and how these forms of cell death can be targeted to protect the myocardium from injury. The laboratories offer world class research facilities to study the effects of a range of novel therapeutic approaches to protecting the heart using a range of in vitro and in vivo techniques including isolated perfused organ systems and transgenic models as well as state of the art fluorescent confocal imaging, flow cytometry and nano particle tracking ability. The HCI also supports the teaching of undergraduates (lectures & laboratory-based research) as well as postgraduates. With regard to the latter we have to date successfully supervised in access of 55 students for PhD and MD(Res) degrees.

Dr Sean Davidson leads the Exosome Research Group focussing on studies to understand the role of these nanoparticles and investigating their potential as novel cardioprotective agents.

Highlights:

• Hausenloy DJ, Candilio L, Evans R, Ariti C, Jenkins DP, Kolvekar S, Knight R, Kunst G, Laing C, Nicholas J, Pepper J, Robertson S, Xenou M, Clayton T, Yellon DM. Effect of Remote Ischemic Preconditioning on Clinical Outcomes in Patients Undergoing Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery: The ERICCA Trial. New Engl J of Med  2015;373:1408-17
• Heusch G, Bøtker HE, Przyklenk K, Redington A, Yellon D. Remote Ischemic Conditioning. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2015 ;65:177-195
• Hausenloy DJ, Yellon DM. Ischaemic conditioning and reperfusion injury. Nat Rev Cardiol. 2016;13:193-209
• Rossello X, Yellon DM. Cardioprotection: The Disconnect Between Bench and Bedside. Circulation. 2016;134:574-5
• Pickard JM, Davidson SM, Hausenloy DJ, Yellon DM. Co-dependence of the neural and humoral pathways in the mechanism of remote ischemic conditioning. Basic Res Cardiol. 2016 Jul;111(4):50
• Davidson SM, Riquelme JA, Takov K, Vicencio JM, Boi-Doku C, Khoo V, Doreth C, Radenkovic D, Lavandero S, Yellon DM. Cardioprotection mediated by exosomes is impaired in the setting of type II diabetes but can be rescued by the use of non-diabetic exosomes in vitro. J Cell Mol Med. 2017 Aug 25
• Pickard JM, Burke N, Davidson SM, Yellon DM. Intrinsic cardiac ganglia and acetylcholine are important in the mechanism of ischaemic preconditioning. Basic Res Cardiol. 2017;112:11
• Bell RM, Yellon DM. SGLT2 inhibitors: hypotheses on the mechanism of cardiovascular protection. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2017 Oct 10.
• Davidson SM, Riquelme JA, Zheng Y, Vicencio JM, Lavandero S, Yellon DM. Endothelial cells release cardioprotective exosomes that may contribute to ischaemic preconditioning. Sci Rep. 2018 Oct 26;8(1):15885.
• Yellon DM, He Z, Khambata R, Ahluwalia A, Davidson SM. The GTN patch: a simple and effective new approach to cardioprotection? Basic Res Cardiol. 2018 Apr 17;113(3):20
• Basalay MV, Davidson SM, Gourine AV, Yellon DM. Neural mechanisms in remote ischaemic conditioning in the heart and brain: mechanistic and translational aspects. Basic Res Cardiol. 2018 Jun 1;113(4):25

Contact details:

Professor Derek Yellon
Director of the Hatter Cardiovascular Institute, UCL
67 Chenies Mews, London WC1E 6HX
Tel: +44 (0)20 3447 9888
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/hatter-cardiovascular-institute