Nicola Smart to deliver John French Lecture

On Tuesday 8 June 2021, Associate Professor Nicola Smart, BHF Ian Fleming Fellow and Associate Professor of Cardiovascular Development and Regeneration will deliver the John French Lecture at the joint British Atherosclerosis Society (BAS) and British Society for Cardiovascular Research (BSCR) meeting within the British Cardiovascular Society (BCS) meeting.

BAS's annual John French Lecture is named in memory of an outstanding vascular pathologist from the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology here in the University. French's detailed descriptions of atherosclerosis and thrombosis using electron microscopy were among the first to be published, and he was the first person to supply morphological evidence of platelet degranulation. 

The lecture in his honour is annually given by a younger UK-based investigator who is considered by the organisers to be a rising star in atherosclerosis research, and is chosen by the Society’s committee after nominations are sought from the membership.

Prof Smart's research aims to develop novel strategies for vascular protection and regeneration, based on understanding how these processes are controlled in the developing embryo. Specifically, the Smart Group has identified relevant targets for protection against aortic aneurysm and coronary artery disease and stimulating new vessel growth after a heart attack.

Earlier this year, a new study from the Smart group shed light on a key regulatory step in the initiation and progression of abdominal aortic aneurysm by revealing the protective role of a previously little known small protein.

Prof Smart's talk "Mechanisms of vessel growth and repair: insights from the developing embryo" will be given virtually this year, and the full programme of talks at the BCS Annual Conference 2021 can be viewed on the BAS website.