Professor Lina Badimon (Medical School of UVic-UCC / IRIS-CC and Cardiovascular Research Foundation for Health and Innovation (FICSI) - Barcelona, Spain) has been instrumental in research into thrombosis and atherosclerosis and in furthering our understanding of the processes and management of CV and heart disease.
“The driving force throughout my career has been to solve unmet needs in CVD to improve patients’ health. One of my earliest achievements, during my postdoctoral fellowship at the Mayo Clinic in the US, was the development of the Badimon perfusion chamber, an ex-vivo model of thrombosis, to investigate the vascular wall under different haemodynamic conditions [1]. This was adopted extensively around the world, particularly for the investigation of compounds blocking cell–cell interactions and platelet-based cell interactions. The chamber also facilitated understanding of the potential efficacy of stents in restoring vessel patency. For around 10 years, my work at Mount Sinai Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital continued to focus on mechanisms of thrombosis formation in coronary artery obstruction [2]. My efforts led directly to the introduction of a research element, working closely alongside the centres’ clinical programmes, to improve the understanding and advancement of disease management.
A commitment to establishing research within clinical settings continued on my return to Spain, where I linked research at the Cardiovascular Sciences Institute and the Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, and where my interest in thrombosis extended to looking at potential triggers, including metabolic factors and the atherosclerotic plaque molecular/cellular composition. Studies on vascular smooth muscle and endothelial cells went on to improve understanding about how LDL cholesterol was impairing vascular cell functions and how tissue factor, an initiator of thrombotic events, was involved both in facilitating new vessel formation and in mediating inflammatory functions. More recently, in keeping with an aim to observe how molecules key in one context interact in another, my research has incorporated lipoprotein receptor regulation and omics technologies. Last year our group demonstrated that blockade of LRP5, a WNT-signalling pathway receptor, reduces platelet adhesion and thrombus formation and could be a useful actionable antithrombotic target [3]. This finding adds to our earlier in-vivo preclinical work showing the pleiotropic effects of atorvastatin, which, in addition to its cholesterol-lowering effects, can reduce myocardial infarction scar size, when used in appropriate doses and delivery routes [4]. The clinical implications of these studies are huge given that this is an unmet clinical need and there is currently no effective way to achieve this in patients.
Another critical area of unmet need is the identification of molecular signatures to improve the characterisation of patients with moderate-risk ACS and subclinical atherosclerosis. I am currently collaborating with several European and international groups investigating CV risk enhancers, early disease biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets. Furthermore, I am contributing to The Lancet Regional Health-Europe commission on inequalities and disparities in CV health, and I have a specific interest in investigating how to improve CV health in women [5].
Outside my research, it is a great honour to have been the first woman president of the Spanish Society of Atherosclerosis and the European Society of Clinical Investigation, and to have played important roles in the European Atherosclerosis Society and the ESC (including Vice President), particularly leading Women in Cardiology, which has done much to improve the representation and participation of women in the field. Finally, I am very proud to have trained more than 100 young people over the years – physicians, pharmacologists, biologists, biotechnologists, laboratory technicians and even engineers – with over 45 obtaining their PhDs. These now friends and colleagues are part of a new generation that will go on to make important contributions to the future of cardiology and medicine. I thank the ESC for this Gold Medal, which belongs not only to me, but also to my mentors, trainees and family.”
“We are dealing with the leading cause of death and disability worldwide. There are many problems remaining to be solved – be proactive, be creative and stay abreast of new technologies.”
