Professor Shu Ye

Shu Ye is Professor of Cardiovascular Molecular Medicine and Genetics at University of Leicester since 2015. He was Professor of Molecular Medicine and Genetics at Queen Marry University of London from 2008 to 2014. He graduated from medicine in China (1983) and obtained an MD degree from the Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Sciences (1992) and a PhD degree from University College London (1996). His research has been focused on understanding the genetic determinants and mechanisms of cardiovascular diseases. He teaches these and related topics in undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. He is the Director of the BHF 4-year PhD Studentship Programme at University of Leicester.

My major research interests are: 1) the genetic basis of cardiovascular diseases particularly coronary artery disease (CAD) and 2) atherosclerosis the pathology that underlies the vast majority of CAD cases and involves in several other vascular conditions such as aneurysms and stroke. The goals of my research are to provide a greater understanding of the mechanisms and pathogenesis of these major diseases and to identify novel biological targets for the development of new treatments. My research has been funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) UK Medical Research Council European Union and industry. Currently I am the principal investigator of a BHF Programme Grants a BHF Special Project Grant and a BHF Project Grant and a co-investigator of several other grants.

1. Lu Z, 11 other authors, Ye S*, Hu Y*. A novel long non-coding RNA inhibits reverse cholesterol transport and promotes atherosclerosis. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 41:1191-1204; 2021 (*corresponding authors).
2. Yang X, 13 other authors, Ye S. FURIN expression in vascular endothelial cells is modulated by a coronary artery disease-associated genetic variant and influences monocyte transendothelial migration. J Am Heart Assoc 9:e014333; 2020.
3. Hu Y, 22 other authors, Ye S. Long Noncoding RNA NEXN-AS1 mitigates atherosclerosis by regulating the actin-binding protein NEXN. J Clin Invest 129:1115-1128; 2019.
4. Zhao G, 10 other authors, Ye S. Influence of a coronary artery disease-associated genetic variant on FURIN expression and effect of furin on macrophage behavior. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 38:1837-1844; 2018.
5. Chen Y, 5 other authors, Ye S*, Tan X*. Subcutaneous injection of nitroglycerin at the radial artery puncture site reduces the risk of early radial artery occlusion after transradial coronary catheterization: a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial. Circ Cardiovasc Interv 11:e006571; 2018 (*corresponding authors).
6. Yang W, 16 other authors, Ye S. Coronary-heart-disease-associated genetic variant at the COL4A1/COL4A2 locus affects COL4A1/COL4A2 expression, vascular cell survival, atherosclerotic plaque stability and risk of myocardial infarction. PLoS Genet 118:420-32; 2016.
7. Xiao Q, 13 other authors, Ye S. Matrix metalloproteinase-8 promotes vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and neointima formation. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 34:90-8; 2014.
8. Pu X, 15 other authors, Ye S. ADAMTS7 cleavage and vascular smooth muscle cell migration is affected by a coronary artery disease associated variant. Am J Hum Genet 92:366-74; 2013.
9. Chan K, 50 other authors, Ye S. Association between the chromosome 9p21 locus and angiographic coronary artery disease burden: a collaborative meta-analysis. J Am Coll Cardiol 61:957-70; 2013.
10. Xiao Q, 14 other authors, Ye S. A functional role of matrix metalloproteinase-8 in stem/progenitor cell migration and their recruitment into atherosclerotic lesions. Circ Res 112:35-47; 2013.

I am currently the primary supervisor of 2 PhD students and a co-supervisor of another PhD student. Topics that I provide training and research project supervision include cardiovascular genetics functional genomics and atherosclerosis.

I teach on: Methods in ""Bench to Bedside"" Research (Module MB7057) of the MRes Cardiovascular Science Programme; Biochemical Mechanisms of Human Disease (Module MB3001); Understanding Disease -An Integrated Approach (Module MB3057); Introduction to Medical Bioscience (Module MB1080).

Genetics of cardiovascular disease