Meet the Scientists of Tomorrow

Dr. Verena Schwach is an assistant professor in the Applied Stem Cell Technologies group in the Department of BioEngineering Technologies at the University of Twente. She leads research at the interface of stem‑cell biology and advanced tissue models to study heart development and disease. Her group combines CRISPR‑based methods with organ‑on‑chip technology to create multi‑organ microphysiological systems for disease modelling and cardiac safety testing.

She looks forward to joining the ESC SOT to exchange expertise, build collaborations, and help shape the future of cardiovascular research.

Dr Roman Vuerich is a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Vascular Signalling, Goethe University Frankfurt. His work links vascular biology and regenerative medicine, using mouse models, advanced imaging, and single‑cell multi‑omics to study microvascular remodelling and therapeutic angiogenesis. During his PhD in Molecular Biomedicine (University of Trieste/ICGEB), he focused on endothelial–cardiomyocyte communication and heart regeneration. He now studies endothelial–pericyte crosstalk and metabolic‑epigenetic reprogramming in myocardial infarction and cardiometabolic disease, aiming to identify new targets for vascular therapies.

Roman has received multiple ESC Young Investigator and Best Oral Presentation awards, as well as the Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Award and the EU Health Award. 

Area of expertise: cardio-immunology, ischaemic cardiomyopathy, acute myocardial infarction, amyloidosis

Dr Panagiota Efstathia Nikolaou obtained her PhD in 2022 from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece. Since 2017, her research has focused on mechanisms of myocardial injury in acute myocardial infarction and heart failure, with an emphasis on novel cardioprotective strategies and cardiac amyloidosis.
Her current work examines bone‑marrow cell interactions in cardiovascular disease. She has trained at leading international institutions and collaborates widely in cardiology research. Dr Nikolaou has received national and international funding and has presented her work globally, earning several prestigious awards.

Area of expertise: myocardial infarction, coronary artery disease, cardioimmunology, angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis.

Dr Hardy completed his PhD in 2023 through an international collaboration between the University of Newcastle (Australia) and the Medical University of Graz (Austria). He then received a fellowship at St John’s College Oxford, supporting an independent research programme until 2027. His work focuses on vascular, immune, and fibrotic responses in cardiovascular disease, from early onset to later wound healing. He uses translational models to study therapeutic angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis after myocardial infarction and to identify early targets in coronary microvascular disease. His research is supported by St John’s College, the British Heart Foundation, and other national and international funders.

Area of expertise: dyslipidemia, atherosclerosis, adaptive immune response and T lymphocytes. 

Dr Bonacina is Assistant Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Milan, Italy. She obtained her PhD at the University of Milan, studying inflammation in cardiometabolic diseases, and then joined the Cardiovascular Immunology Lab at Queen Mary University of London to investigate T‑cell activation in dyslipidaemia.
Her current research combines lipid metabolism and immune responses to identify new molecular targets to prevent immune‑inflammatory activation in cardiometabolic diseases, using humanised models. Dr Bonacina has received national and international grants and awards and is a member of the European Lipoprotein Club OC and the Young Fellows of the European Atherosclerosis Society.

Area of expertise: pathophysiology of valvular heart diseases.

Dr Romain Capoulade obtained his PhD in Experimental Medicine from Laval University, Canada, in 2014, studying metabolic drivers of calcific aortic valve stenosis. He then worked at Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, focusing on mitral valve disease.
He later joined INSERM U1087 in Nantes, France, where he leads a research programme on the cellular and molecular mechanisms of heart valve disease. His work is supported by national and European grants. In 2020, he was elected to the young researcher nucleus of the French cardiovascular research group, contributing to initiatives supporting early‑career scientists.