Dr Stacy Robertson
- Project Manager (Institute of Cardiovascular & Medical Sciences)
telephone:
8428
email:
Stacy.Robertson@glasgow.ac.uk
Institute of Cardiovascular & Medical Sciences, 126 University Place, G12 8TA
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0747-5493Biography
I graduated from the University of Aberdeen with a 1st class BSc (Hons) in Biomedical Sciences (Physiology) in 2007. I completed my PhD in 2012 under the supervision of Prof. Eleanor Davies and Dr Scott MacKenzie in ICAMs at the University of Glasgow. My PhD investigated the role of microRNAs on the regulation of steroid production in the adrenal gland.
After a short BBSRC-funded postdoctoral position modifying adenoviral vectors to alter vascular targeting with Prof. Andrew Baker at University of Glasgow I was awarded the Marcus Blackmore Research Fellowship at the Heart Research Institute, Sydney (Australia). Here, I studied microRNA expression in hypertension induced vascular complications and extracellular transport of microRNAs. I also investigated inflammasome activation in coronary artery disease patients, testing the use of the anti-inflammatory colchicine to suppress activation and used patient samples to help understand its action in monocytes. Finally, I collaborated on projects that investigated how High Density Lipoprotein (HDL) elicits its beneficial effects in vascular cells. During my time in Sydney, I also held a co-joint Associate Lecturer position at the University of Sydney.
I returned to ICAMs in 2016 to continue my postdoctoral training, initially on an MRC-funded project with Prof. Stuart Nicklin, investigating the protective effects of angiotensin-(1-9) in treating vascular injury. Currently, I am a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Prof. Eleanor Group, working on a H2020-funded project aiming to define specific omics signatures for endocrine hypertension.
Research interests
My main interests are in understanding microRNA expression and function in the adrenal gland and vascular systems, my research predominantly focuses on understanding which microRNAs that are modulated by hormones involved in regulating blood pressure: aldosterone and angiotensin II; what pathways these microRNAs act on; and finally how microRNAs are transported between cells via extracellular particles. This is a growing area of research and has implications for basic mechanistic physiology, understanding causative pathways in endocrine hypertension and related end-organ damage, and has the potential to identify new biomarkers.
