The BHF Centre of Research Excellence in Edinburgh is funded by a five-year award from the British Heart Foundation to accelerate our science. By collaborating across disciplines and institutions, we will deliver bold discoveries and foster the next generation of research leaders. REA4 news: Recruiting now We have a suite of new opportunities in our Centre, and are seeking people with the ideas and ambition to drive forward our work. Current opportunities close on 8 May 2025.View REA4 job opportunities The BHF Centre of Research Excellence (REA4) builds on three previous BHF Centre Awards. Our themes align with our world-leading areas of expertise. A focus on the heart–brain axis is a core of our research. REA4 theme schematic Theme 1: Heart DiseasesLed by Prof Andy Baker, this theme embodies the core strengths of the successful delivery of the full translational spectrum of cardiovascular research within Edinburgh. We now propose to explore how the vasculature interacts with the whole body and nervous system, and its role in the pathophysiology of cardiovascular diseases including atherosclerosis and aneurysm disease. The theme also highlights the opportunities to study bidirectional neurovascular interactions, such as how the brain affects the heart and how the heart affects the brain.Theme 2: Stroke and Vascular DementiaLed by Prof Rustam Salman, this theme spans the full research spectrum from improving the understanding of the fundamental mechanisms of cerebral small vessel disease all the way through to using novel data-mining methods to identify trial patients and new interventions. This theme will provide major added value through our strong links with the UK Dementia Research Institute Centre, the Row Fogo Centre and the future joint BHF and UK DRI Centre for Vascular Dementia Research.Theme 3: CardiometabolismLed by Prof Rebecca Reynolds, this theme plays to our longstanding strengths in cardiometabolism and aims to dissect the metabolic drivers of cardiovascular disease across the life course as this is critical for future preventative strategies given that most common cardiovascular and neurovascular diseases are only diagnosed after decades of subclinical disease progression. Cardiometabolism is linked with the UKRI Mental Health Platform Hub in Metabolic Psychiatry, reinforcing the cross-disciplinary connections in this theme.Theme 4: Advanced Cardiovascular ImagingLed by Prof Joanna Wardlaw, Advanced Cardiovascular Imaging will use our unrivalled imaging facilities to focus on key areas of the heart-brain axis, early life research to understand congenital and paediatric cardiovascular disease, and deep phenotyping of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease. For example, applying thrombus imaging techniques developed in the heart to patients with cerebrovascular disease will bring greater clarity to the role and origins of thrombosis in cryptogenic stroke.Theme 5: Data Driven InnovationLed by Prof Nick Mills, this theme will harness routinely collected health data methods to improve care for people presenting with suspected acute cardiovascular conditions. This will be achieved through discovery science to train and to test models that provide diagnostic probabilities and risk estimates for patients presenting with suspected acute coronary or neurovascular syndromes. These models will then be validated and allow the co-design of data-driven care pathways. Ultimate clinical implementation will lead to embedded decision-support tools into the electronic patient record and the evaluation of its impact on resource use and patient outcomes. REA4 job opportunities Current vacancies in the BHF Centre of Research Excellence BHF REA4 Pump Priming Awards Information on applying for small grants from the BHF Centre of Research Excellence BHF REA4 Translational Research Awards Grants for translational projects from the BHF Centre of Research Excellence REA newsletters The REA bimonthly newsletter This article was published on 2024-03-19
