Rate My Professor Christopher Loughrey

Professor Christopher Loughrey is Professor of Experimental Cardiology in the School of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Health at the University of Glasgow. A qualified veterinary surgeon, he earned his BVMS in 2000 and PhD in 2003 from the University of Glasgow. In 2005, he established his independent research group within the Glasgow Cardiovascular Research Centre, pioneering novel animal models to investigate human cardiac diseases such as myocardial infarction and heart failure. His research adopts an integrative approach to explore the pathophysiology of heart disease, with a focus on excitation-contraction coupling in cardiomyocytes, sarcoplasmic reticulum-mediated calcium handling, adverse cardiac remodelling, ischaemia-reperfusion injury, myocarditis, and cathepsin activity. Current efforts target therapeutic interventions for heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), including inhibition of ryanodine receptors and runt-related transcription factors like RUNX1. Methodologies employed include confocal microscopy, single-cell electrophysiology, fluorescence imaging, Western blotting, RT-qPCR, isolated heart perfusions, and in vivo phenotyping via echocardiography and pressure-volume analysis.

Loughrey's career encompasses key leadership appointments: International Dean for the College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences from 2018 to 2024, driving international partnerships; and Head of the School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine since August 2023, providing strategic and operational oversight for over 500 staff across veterinary facilities. As Principal Investigator on a British Heart Foundation programme grant, he has obtained funding from the Medical Research Council, British Heart Foundation, Heart Research UK, Medical Research Scotland, and Chief Scientist Office. He serves as Deputy Executive Editor of Cardiovascular Research, previously on the editorial board of the British Journal of Pharmacology, and as a member of the British Heart Foundation Project Grants Committee. An elected Fellow of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, he contributes to the RCVS Council, Standards Committee, and Veterinary Schools Council. Awards include Fellowship of the Royal Society of Biology (2023), Honorary Professor at the University of Sydney (2023), Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (2008), INSPIRE Award from the Academy of Medical Sciences (2016-2017), Judge's Prize from the British Cardiac Society (2003), and President's Prize from the Association of Veterinary Teachers and Research Workers (2001). Select publications are 'RUNX1: an emerging therapeutic target for cardiovascular disease' (Cardiovascular Research, 2020), 'Runx1 deficiency protects against adverse cardiac remodeling after myocardial infarction' (2018), 'Preclinical models of myocardial infarction: from mechanism to translation' (2022), 'Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase IIdelta associates with the ryanodine receptor complex and regulates channel function in rabbit heart' (2004), and 'A novel ryanodine receptor 2 inhibitor, M201-A, enhances diastolic function' (British Journal of Pharmacology, 2024).