 Dr Heather Medbury
Vascular Biology Research Centre
Dr Heather Medbury is a Senior Hospital Scientist in the Vascular Biology Research Centre, Department of Surgery, University of Sydney, Westmead Hospital where she directs the group's research.
She graduated in Science with BSc Honours (First Class) from the University of Sydney, majoring in Biochemistry, in 1989. She completed her PhD in transplant immunology at the National Pancreas Transplant Unit here at Westmead Hospital in 1997, (Department of Medicine, University of Sydney) before transferring to Vascular Biology to work for Professor John Fletcher, the head of Surgery for the University. She established laboratory based research for the Department of Surgery at Westmead Hospital which, combined with the large animal work operating in the Department, become known as the Vascular Biology Research Centre.
She took time off with the birth of her two children and returned to research part time mid 2002 to take on the role of Research Director. She job shares with Dr Ann Guiffre who took the role of Research Manager.
Heather has taken the group into the new direction of fibrocytes in vascular wound healing. With the fibrocyte being a monocyte-derived cell, her work is demonstrating that monocytes have a fibrotic role in various vascular conditions such as atherosclerosis and intimal hyperplasia. This has not been previously demonstrated and her findings will have direct implications for the therapeutic treatment of these conditions. Despite only beginning work in the area of fibrocytes in 2003, she already has a book chapter on the role of this cell in atherosclerosis.
Her work has received oral presentations at national and international meetings including at the American Heart Association (2004) and International Atherosclerosis Society meetings (Rome 2006).
Research Interests
Her research focus is redefining the role of monocytes in vascular wound models such as atherosclerosis and intimal hyperplasia. Her aim is to not just add to the literature on various vascular conditions, but redefine the processes involved to provide new targets for therapeutic intervention.
Current projects:
- Tracking monocytes in wound healing, atherosclerosis, and intimal hyperplasia models, determining where, when and under what conditions they transform.
- Examining the transformation of monocytes from patients with different vascular conditions to identify different factors that may promote fibrocyte formation.
- Comparing monocytes, macrophages and fibrocytes to assess their role on atherosclerotic plaque stability.
Publications
Book Chapter
- Medbury HJ 'Fibrocytes in atherogenesis' In Fibrocytes: New Insights into Tissue Repair and Systemic Fibroses. Ed R. Bucala, World Scientific Publishing, Feb 2007.
Journal Articles
- Varcoe, R. L., M. Mikhail, A. K. Guiffre, G. Pennings, M. Vicaretti, W. J. Hawthorne, J. P. Fletcher, and H. J. Medbury. 2006. The role of the fibrocyte in intimal hyperplasia. J Thromb Haemost 4:1125-33. PMID: 16689767
- Russo, R., H. Medbury, A. Guiffre, H. Englert, and N. Manolios. 2007. Lack of increased expression of cell surface markers for circulating fibrocyte progenitors in limited scleroderma. Clin Rheumatol 26:1136-41. PMID: 17061153
- McEwen, A., C. Emmanuel, H. Medbury, A. Leick, D. M. Walker, and H. Zoellner. 2003. Induction of contact-dependent endothelial apoptosis by osteosarcoma cells suggests a role for endothelial cell apoptosis in blood-borne metastasis. J Pathol 201:395-403. PMID: 14595751
- Huang, P., W. J. Hawthorne, P. Ao, G. L. Angeli, H. J. Medbury, and J. P. Fletcher. 2002. Perigraft adventitia and intima remodeling after synthetic patch implantation in sheep carotid artery: role of apoptosis and proliferation. J Vasc Surg 36:371-8. PMID: 12170220
- Emmanuel, C., E. Foo, H. J. Medbury, J. Matthews, A. Comis, and H. Zoellner. 2002. Synergistic induction of apoptosis in human endothelial cells by tumour necrosis factor-alpha and transforming growth factor-beta. Cytokine 18:237-41. PMID: 12161098
- Huang, P., W. J. Hawthorne, A. Peng, G. L. Angeli, H. J. Medbury, and J. P. Fletcher. 2001. Calcium channel antagonist verapamil inhibits neointimal formation and enhances apoptosis in a vascular graft model. Am J Surg 181:492-8. PMID: 11513772
- Xu, W., E. J. Favaloro, H. Medbury, and H. Zoellner. 2001. Human endothelial cells maintain anti-aggregatory activity for platelets during apoptosis. Thromb Haemost 85:915-23. PMID: 11372688
- Medbury, H. J., M. Hibbins, A. M. Lehnert, W. J. Hawthorne, J. R. Chapman, T. E. Mandel, and P. J. O'Connell. 1997. The cytokine and histological response in islet xenograft rejection is dependent upon species combination. Transplantation 64:1307-14. PMID: 9371673
Contact Details
T +61 2
9845 7677
F +61 2 9893 7440
E hmedbury@med.usyd.edu.au
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