Samira Lakhal-Littleton - Cardiac Sciences - 'Iron and the heart '

Over the past decade, research by this team has shown that iron deficiency (ID) affects much more than our ability to make haemoglobin (i.e. our risk of anaemia). Iron is required for many other processes in the body, notably making the ATP necessary to power the contraction of the skeletal and cardiac muscles. Work by this team was the first to demonstrate that ID in the heart, which we have termed “myocardial iron depletion” (MID) can cause heart failure even when haemoglobin levels are normal. Our discoveries provided a long-sought explanation for why ID, even in the absence of anaemia, is associated with increased risk of incident heart failure (HF) in the general population, and with worse outcomes in patients with HF. We are now building on these discoveries to translate them into clinical practice. Keys objectives are: 1. Discovering novel non-invasive biomarkers of MID 2. Understanding if current iron supplementation approaches correct MID 3. Exploring the role of MID in other disease conditions such as dilated cardiomyopathy Our research combines clinical studies and preclinical models of heart failure. Techniques range from proteomic and metabolomic characterisation of patient samples, to advanced MR imaging of Heart function in pre-clinical models, to cell-based work. We are a diverse team of highly motivated researchers with a shared passion for translational research.