Professor Derek M Yellon (Director)
Prof Derek M.Yellon, PhD, DSc, FRCP (Hon), FACC, FESC, FAHA
Derek M Yellon is Professor of Molecular & Cellular Cardiology at University College London. Professor Yellon established the Hatter Cardiovascular Institute in 1990 and continues to lead as its Director.
In 1993 he was appointed Professor of Molecular & Cellular Cardiology at University College London. He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians; the American College of Cardiology; the European Society of Cardiology; the International Society for Heart Research, the American Heart Association, and the British Cardiovascular Society. He also holds an Hon Professorial post in the Division of Medicine at the University of Cape Town.
Professor Yellon established The Hatter Cardiovascular Institute at UCL as a specialised translational research institution to investigate myocardial protection, the pathophysiology of ischaemia/reperfusion injury and cardioprotection in the setting of diabetes, & molecular aspects of ischaemic injury, in both the basic and clinical arena. Through the work of the past 30 years, Professor Yellon has now developed complementary programmes including protecting the heart following chronic kidney disease, ischaemic stroke and cardioprotection following cancer therapy (see research).
Under Professor Yellon’s guidance, the Hatter Cardiovascular Institute has developed a strong reputation in these areas, leading on international clinical trials and forging strong collaborative links with both industry and academia. The Hatter Cardiovascular Institute also runs a range of international & national education & postgraduate training programme (see education & training)
Professor Yellon is on the editorial board of several major Cardiovascular Journals and has published in excess of 600 full papers and edited 23 books. Professor Yellon has a current h-index of 146 and has been named as a Highly Cited Researcher (Web of Science) annually since 2019. Reflecting his extensive knowledge and experience, Professor Yellon is one of the highest ranked experimental cardiologists in the UK.
Research Team
Prof J. Malcolm Walker, BSc, MD, FRCP (Clinical Director)
Professor Malcolm Walker trained in Cardiology at St Thomas’ Hospital London, then Oxford before being appointed as a Consultant Cardiologist at University College & the Middlesex Hospitals, London in 1987. Together with Professor Yellon, Professor Walker was instrumental in establishing The Hatter Cardiovascular Institute and continues to serve as its Clinical Director.
Over his 40 years of clinical experience, Professor Walker has developed an expertise in cardiology ranging from intervention in ischaemia to the development of cardiac rehabilitation programmes. Throughout this time, he has maintained a strong focus on inherited blood conditions. In 1993 he established a dedicated cardiology service for patients with thalassaemia and sickle cell anaemia and has earned an international reputation in this specialised area of medicine. His work developing specialised T2* MRI sequences has resulted in a significant reduction in mortality for these patients. Recently he has built on his experience in cardiac screening and has embarked on a clinical and laboratory research programme investigating the cardiovascular consequences of cancer and cancer therapy.
He is on the scientific boards of the national and international bodies that support thalassaemia patients (UKTS and TIF) and has written the National and International guidelines for clinical management of these disorders. Professor Walker is the author of over 120 publications and book contributions.
Prof Derek Hausenloy, MBChB, PhD, FRCP (UK), FACC, FESC
Derek Hausenloy is Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at University College London and an Honorary Consultant Cardiologist at UCLH. As Professor at Duke-National University of Singapore Medical School and Research Director and Senior Consultant at the National Heart Centre, Singapore, Professor Hausenloy is a key collaborator for the Hatter Cardiovascular Institute.
Professor Hausenloy conducts both basic and clinical research in the areas of ischaemic heart disease, heart failure, cardioprotection, cardiac MRI, cardiac PET/MR, acute ischaemia/reperfusion injury, and cardiac disease modelling using human iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes. His research focus is on discovering novel therapies for protecting the heart against the detrimental effects of acute ischaemia/reperfusion injury to prevent the onset of heart failure. He uses a translational approach to cardioprotection ranging from cellular and animal models of acute ischaemia/reperfusion injury to proof-of-concept clinical studies in acute myocardial infarction and cardiac bypass surgery patients, and finally to large multi-centre randomised clinical trials focused on clinical outcomes. Prof Hausenloy has been PI on over 30 research grants, and he has authored over 350 papers with an h-index of 101 (43,487 citations). He was named as a Highly Cited Researcher in 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2022.
Email address:
d.hausenloy@ucl.ac.uk
Prof Sean M Davidson, BSc (Hons), PhD (Professorial Research Fellow)
Professor Davidson is a Research Group leader at the Hatter Cardiovascular Institute. The overarching aim of Professor Davidson’s research is to identify novel methods to protect the heart from injury sustained during a myocardial infarction, or heart attack. He supervises several postdoctoral researchers and PhD students who are studying cardioprotective pathways (the “reperfusion injury salvage kinase” or RISK pathway) and cell death pathways (mitochondrially mediated necrosis, necroptosis, pyroptosis). A key interest is on the role of nanoparticles called exosomes, and how they can be used to protect the heart via these pathways. The research is laboratory-based but with a clear aim to translating through to clinical application and ultimately, patient benefit.
Professor Davidson received the accolade “Highly Cited Researcher™” from Clarivate in 2022, which recognizes the world’s most influential researchers.
He is a committee member of the International Society of Heart Research (ISHR, European Section) and past Chair of the European Society of Cardiology Working Group on Cell Biology of the Heart. He serves on the editorial board of the journals Cardiovascular Research, Basic Research in Cardiology, and Cardiovascular Drugs and Therapy.
Email address:
s.davidson@ucl.ac.uk
Dr Robert Bell, PhD, FRCP (Associate Professor)
Dr Robert Bell is an associate Professor at the Hatter Cardiovascular Institute and an Honorary Cardiology Consultant at University College London Hospitals, including the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery.
Cytoprotection and ischaemia/ reperfusion injury are Dr Bell’s key research interests. His current projects are centred on the identification of novel cellular protection pathways and their clinical translation, as well as determining the impact of hyperglycaemia upon myocardial infarction and the cardioprotective properties of sodium/glucose linked transporter (SGLT) inhibitors. From this work, he has developed a clinical interest in the translation of these protective strategies in both the heart and brain. Additionally, Dr Bell has a research interest in red-cell cardiology, including Thalassemia, in which he works closely with Dr Malcolm Walker.
Dr Bell serves as Chairman of the Barts Heart Centre Peer Review and BioResearch boards and is an active member of the European Society of Cardiology Stroke Working Group, British Cardiology Society, British Society for Cardiovascular Research and International Society for Heart Research – on which he is the Current Academic Clinician Committee Member.
Email address:
rob.bell@ucl.ac.uk
Dr Mohamed Bellahcene, PhD (Post-Doctoral Research Fellow)
Dr Mohamed Bellahcene is an In Vivo Scientist with over 20 years of experience in biomedical research and preclinical studies. He is dedicated to transforming basic science discoveries into breakthrough therapies that can make a real difference in patients’ lives.
His translational work focuses on innovative protective strategies in the areas of coronary heart disease, heart failure, peripheral vascular disease, stroke, cardio-oncology, and metabolic syndrome.
Dr Bellahcene currently helps to address one of the most urgent challenges in neurological medicine: reducing brain damage after a stroke. His goal is to validate the efficacy of our unique activator of PI3Kα isoform in reducing reperfusion injury after ischaemic stroke in preclinical models. Additionally, he aims to identify the optimal dosage and therapeutic window for this promising adjunctive therapy.
Prior to joining the Hatter Cardiovascular Institute, Dr Bellahcene contributed to cutting-edge cardiovascular regenerative medicine at three Centres of Research Excellence funded by the British Heart Foundation and based at King’s College London, the University of Oxford, and Imperial College London.
Dr Bellahcene was educated at the University of Strasbourg (France), and the University of Basel (Switzerland) where he completed his PhD investigating the signalling mechanisms underlying ventricular arrhythmias after cardiac ischaemia and the protective effect of ischaemic preconditioning.
Email address:
m.bellahcene@ucl.ac.uk
Dr Thomas Wright, PhD (Post-Doctoral Research Fellow)
Dr Wright’s research focuses on the mechanisms underlying cardio-renal syndrome, with a particular interest in how organ crosstalk and inflammatory responses drive cardiovascular complications. Building on his Ph.D. work, which explored how inflammation and microvascular dysfunction contribute to cardiac pathology in chronic inflammatory disease, he now investigates how chronic kidney disease and systemic inflammation influence cardiac injury and repair processes, ultimately worsening outcomes following myocardial infarction.
His current projects aim to define the inflammatory and cellular pathways that mediate communication between the kidneys and heart, with the goal of identifying targets that could reduce cardiovascular risk in the context of renal disease.
Email address:
tom.wright@ucl.ac.uk
Dr Shruthi Krishnan, PhD (Post-Doctoral Research Fellow)
Dr Shruthi Krishnan is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow working towards understanding cellular signalling underlying cardioprotection. Her research focuses on defining the role of PI3K-α signalling and ischemic preconditioning in mitigating myocardial ischemia–reperfusion injury, with the aim of identifying new therapeutic strategies to preserve cardiac function following acute ischemic events.
Dr Krishnan undertook her PhD investigating the cellular signalling mechanisms underlying diabetic kidney disease, where she explored dysregulated proteostasis pathways that drive renal injury in metabolic disorders. Prior to joining the Hatter Cardiovascular Institution, she completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship at Imperial College London, examining impact of stress-responsive signalling and amino acid metabolism on early embryonic development.
Dr Krishnan’s long-term research goal is to translate mechanistic insights in cellular signalling into novel strategies for improving outcomes in heart and metabolic diseases.
Email address:
shruthi.krishnan@ucl.ac.uk
Dr Muhammad Asad Farhan, PhD (Post-Doctoral Research Fellow)
Dr Muhammad Asad Farhan is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow whose research examines how inflammatory and immune-mediated processes contribute to cardiovascular injury. His current work focuses on determining how PI3K-γ and PI3K-δ inhibition influences inflammation and infarct size, with the overarching goal of identifying therapeutic strategies capable of reducing myocardial damage and improving cardiac recovery following ischemic injury.
Dr Farhan PhD thesis investigated the differential effects of direct oral anticoagulants on diabetic kidney disease, where he explored how distinct anticoagulant mechanisms affect renal inflammation, coagulation disturbances and disease progression in metabolic disorders. Alongside his renal research, he has previously worked on cardiac projects, gaining experience in experimental models of atherosclerosis, cardiac injury, and tissue protection. This combined background has equipped him with a strong interdisciplinary understanding of how metabolic, vascular and inflammatory factors interact across organ systems.
Dr Farhan’s long-term research aim is to develop approaches that mitigate inflammation-driven damage in both cardiovascular and metabolic disease contexts. By bridging mechanistic research with clinically relevant models, he seeks to identify therapeutic opportunities that can safeguard vulnerable organs, reduce injury severity and ultimately improve outcomes for patients at heightened cardiovascular risk.
Email address:
m.farhan@ucl.ac.uk