News

Durham University Researcher Receives Over £84k to Fight Heart Disease

(20 December 2006)

National charity Heart Research UK has awarded more than £84,000 to an exciting new medical research project at Durham University which could impact on the treatment of sufferers of coronary artery disease across the UK.

Mr Andrew Owens, who is also a heart surgeon at the James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough and is leading the research, has been awarded £84,040 to carry out research to see if arteries can be grown outside the body using human skin cells. Coronary artery bypass grafting is the main form of treatment for Coronary Artery Disease, and the grafts are most successful if ‘spare’ arteries are used to replace the blocked artery. The 24-month study will take stem cells (specialist cells that no matter their location in the body have the potential to develop into any kind of cell) from the skin and attempt to stimulate them to transform themselves into the cell’s found in a normal artery. The work is part of an ongoing collaboration between the James Cook University Hospital and Durham University, working under the auspices of the North-east England Stem Cell institute (NESCI). Mr Owens says “Coronary artery disease is still one of the biggest causes of death in the Western world, I am hoping that this research will show us if it is possible to see if and how skin stem cells can be used to grow new blood vessels. If this proves possible we could be able to grow bypass vessels specifically for a patient using their own cells, which would benefit the patient much more than the current graft materials used.” He added: “Research studies such as this can only take place with the close collaboration of Universities and hospitals such as ours, and is largely dependent on funding from charities such as Heart Research UK. We are grateful to the charity and its supporters for the opportunity to take this exciting project forwards.” Barbara Harpham, National Director of Heart Research UK, added: “Sadly most people have been affected by heart disease in some way and we want to help scientists improve treatments and techniques to help save lives. This project at the James Cook University Hospital is a prime example of the type of important research, which Heart Research UK is supporting around the UK.” This grant has helped make this a record year for Heart Research UK, as for the first time in its history over £1 million in a single year has been given in grants to help continue the fight against heart disease.