Our mission is to bridge the gap between medical knowledge and public awareness, to prevent heart disease before it occurs. We provide development opportunities for medical and pharmaceutical students and trainees, in partnership with leading global universities. Our driving focus is to have healthcare professionals directly engage with the public through two-way conversations, and to deliver impactful content through corporate, charitable and institutional partnerships.
Albert Ferro studied Medicine at King’s College London (1978-1984), obtaining a 1st Class Honours intercalated BSc degree in Biochemistry in 1981 along the way. After qualifying, and following training as a junior doctor in medicine, he did his PhD in Clinical Pharmacology at Cambridge University. Since that time, his research and clinical interest have both focussed on the prevention and treatment of heart disease.
Professor James Clark has a degree in Applied Biology from the University of Bath and a PhD in Surgery from University College London. Working on the processes involved in ischaemic and pharmacological preconditioning during his PhD and subsequent post-doctoral research he was part of the team to develop novel carbon monoxide releasing molecules (CORMs) which can be used to elucidate the functional role of carbon monoxide in biological systems and led to the formation of the start-up company (HemoCORM).
Professor Clark work now focuses on scientific and medical education and his teaching experience spans whole body integrative and applied physiology including, hyperbaric and diving medicine, the mechanisms that control cardiac function in health and disease and essential academic skills including data analysis and presentation.
Aisah Aubdool is a Lecturer in Cardiovascular Pharmacology at the William Harvey Research Institute, Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). She obtained a BSc in Pharmacology at King’s College London in 2009 before completing an MRes in Integrative Biomedicine where she received extensive in vivotraining in mammalian biology. She subsequently obtained her PhD in the field of cardiovascular medical research under the mentorship of Professor Susan D Brain at the same institution. During her PhD research, she identified transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1) as a vascular cold sensor and made significant contribution to the mechanistic understanding of TRPA1 in vascular homeostasis.
Professor Barbara McGowan is a leading London-based Consultant Endocrinologist and Diabetologist, specializing in obesity medicine, appetite control, and metabolic disorders. She is highly recognized in the UK and internationally for her clinical trials, particularly those involving GLP-1 and other gut hormone therapies for weight management and type 2 diabetes remission.
Jubin P. Joseph, MD, PhD, is an interventional cardiologist with particular expertise in minimally invasive catheter-based therapies for the treatment of heart disease, including heart valve issues, holes in the heart and heart artery disease. Over recent years, he has performed a large number of these procedures, having completed interventional cardiology fellowships in three of the most prestigious institutions in the world.
Dr. Joseph’s research interests include understanding the underlying basic causes of heart failure, along with improving patient outcomes by developing minimally invasive techniques for heart valve repair and replacement, such as transcatheter aortic and mitral valve repair and replacement. He has been co-investigator in many national and international studies, evaluating innovative treatment devices for heart conditions, and he is a frequent speaker at major cardiology conferences.
Dr Swift is a Consultant Nephrologist and Associate Medical Director for Research and Education at Epsom & St. Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust (ESTH). She looks after patients with all stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and has a specialist interest in high blood pressure/hypertension.
Vikas Kapil read Medicine and Anatomy at Queen’s College Cambridge, achieving first class undergraduate honours and then transferred for his undergraduate clinical training to University College London Medical School.
He completed postgraduate training at St Thomas’ and St Bartholomew’s hospitals and was awarded his PhD under the supervision of Professor Amrita Ahluwalia at the William Harvey Research Institute, investigating the effects of inorganic nitrate on the human cardiovascular system.
Professor David Goldsmith is Consultant Nephrologist (Emeritus) at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospitals, London, and Visiting Professor within the Molecular and Clinical Sciences Research Institute at St George's, University of London.
Luigi Gnudi obtained his MD with Honors from Parma University (Italy) in 1988 and completed specialist training in Diabetes and Endocrinology in 1993 (University of Padua, Italy). During 1992-1995 he worked as a postdoctoral fellow with Professor Barbara B Kahn (Harvard Medical School, USA). In 1999 obtained a PhD in Endocrinological Sciences from Milan University (Italy) and in 2005 he became a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and the American Society of Nephrology.
Professor Pankaj Sharma obtained his MBBS qualification in London, his PhD in Cambridge and his MD and his FRCP in London. He has previously been a BHF clinician scientist in Cambridge and a Fulbright scholar at Harvard Medical School, USA. Professor Sharma is currently a consultant neurologist at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. He has published numerous original papers and book chapters and edited two books. He regularly provides expert advice on brain and stroke matters to radio and television media.
The Daugherty Lab is primarily focused on molecular mechanisms of human vascular diseases. Initially, the research was dedicated to modifications of lipoproteins and their roles in influencing the immune responses of atherosclerosis. Since arriving at the University of Kentucky in 1997, the lab has been focused on the role of the renin angiotensin system in atherosclerosis and aortic aneurysms. This work has been in close collaboration with the lab of Dr. Lisa Cassis. The group’s pioneer observation was that angiotensin II (AngII) infusion markedly promoted atherosclerosis and aortic aneurysms in hypercholesterolemic mice. We have subsequently published a series of articles in which we have routinely demonstrated profound effects and the related mechanisms of the renin angiotensin system on atherosclerosis and aortic aneurysms.