Department of Cardiovascular Science

About Us

The Department of Cardiovascular Science was created in 2009, and is home to a total of 23 academic, clinical and research faculty.  The Department is led by Dr Sheila Francis and comprises of nine research groups.  The clinical themes of the Department are coronary artery disease and pulmonary hypertension with horizontal themes of haemostasis and clotting, inflammation and vascular biology.  We employ cell biology, computational modelling, transcriptomics, imaging and physiology in experimental models and man to answer our research questions.

We are based at The University of Sheffield Medical School and at the Biomedical Centre for Research at the Northern General Hospital.
 

Our Research

The Department of Cardiovascular Science comprises nine strong groups working in basic and clinical science. Research in the Department covers genetic, cellular and clinical research in cardiovascular medicine and is integrated into the NIHR Cardiovascular Biomedical Research Unit at the Northern General Hospital with use of patient samples to translate discovery science from basic programmes.

• Cell Biology
• Coronary Artery Disease
• Haemostasis
• Inflammatory Signalling
• Medical Physics
• Non Mammalian Models
• Platelet Group
• Pulmonary Vascular
• Vascular Biology

Our Teaching

We are actively engaged in graduate and postgraduate teaching and research and host more than 50 PhD/MD and MSc/BmedSci candidates for the duration of their studies.  We have recently launched a new Cardiovascular module on the popular MSc in Molecular Medicine at Sheffield.

The University of Sheffield is able to offer students state of the art laboratories, 24/7 access to library and computing facilities, excellent accommodation, world class sporting facilities and easy access to the stunning countryside of the Peak District National Park.

Current Opportunities

Many funded PhD projects are available throughout the year. Further Details.

The Science of the Zebrafish

The zebrafish is amazing. It can heal its own heart. Scientists believe they can unlock the secrets of the zebrafish to repair our damaged heart muscle.

The BHF are funding Dr Tim Chico and his team at the MRC Centre for Developmental and Biomedical Genetics to undertake research studying zebrafish to determine the way that new heart muscle and blood vessels develop.

Funding

The Department has strong links with The University of Sheffield Centre for Stem Cell Biology, The University of Sheffield MRC Centre for Developmental and Biomedical Genetics and with the Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust through the NIHR Cardiovascular Biomedical Research Unit (Director: Storey) and the Clinical Research Facility (Director: Newman).

Funding sources in the Department include:

• National Institute of Health Research (NIHR)
• Medical Research Council (MRC)
• European Union (EU)
• British Heart Foundation (BHF)
• Foundation Leducq
• Novartis
• Bayer
• Cirquest Labs
• Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)
• European Haemophilia Safety Surveillance System (EUHASS)
• National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Mending Broken Hearts Appeal

The good news is that fewer people are dying from heart attacks.  The bad news is that hundreds of thousands of people are living with badly damaged hearts and heart failure.

Heart failure cuts short thousands of lives every year, but now scientists have the first real hope that these lives could be saved.  The British Heart Foundation have recently launched a campaign to fund groundbreaking research.