Postdoctoral Fellows Dr Richard Tyser and Dr Jack Miller have been recognised by the British Society of Cardiovascular Research (BSCR) at their Autumn Meeting, one of two BSCR symposia held each year showcasing state-of-the-art research by some of the most prominent UK and international researchers in the field. Dr Tyser has won the Bernard and Joan Marshall Early Career Investigator Prize, awarded for outstanding research by an early career investigator, and Dr Miller has been recognised with a runner-up award for the Prize.
I am pleased to receive the award, especially given the final decision was based on a presentation at the BSCR meeting, in which 4 other high-quality international researchers also presented. - Dr Richard Tyser
The annual prize rewards excellence in research in any area of cardiovascular biology or medicine. Each year, the winner receives £1,500 and runners-up each receive awards of £500. The Committee of the Society shortlist up to five applications and selected applicants make short competitive presentations at the BSCR Autumn Meeting where the winner is selected by a judging panel and announced during the BSCR Autumn Meeting dinner.
BHF Immediate Fellow Dr Richard Tyser has been recognised for his cutting-edge research looking at how the heart begins to form and function during embryonic development. His award particularly recognises novel findings in a recent paper published in "Science", where the earliest known progenitor of the epicardium, the outermost layer of the heart, was characterised for the first time and linked to the development of other critical cell types in the developing heart.
Novo-Nordisk Postdoctoral Fellow Dr Jack Miller has been recognised for his research focusing on the role metabolism plays in cardiac pathology, and specifically his work creating and using novel imaging techniques to gain new insights into a particular form of heart failure. A forthcoming clinical paper will outline these insights and highlight places to look for future therapies for a condition that currently does not have any good pharmacological remedies.
More information on the BSCR Autumn Meeting, including the full programme, can be found on the BSCR website. Society Committee member Associate Professor Carolyn Carr also delivered a talk on "Metabolic maturation of engineered heart tissue" and the keynote lecture was delivered by Associate Professor Nicola Smart on "Stimulating vessel growth to repair damaged hearts".