Summary
Martin R. Wilkins is Professor of Clinical Pharmacology at Imperial College London. He is the Director of the British Heart Foundation Imperial College Centre of Research Excellence and Director of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Imperial Clinical Research Facility at Hammersmith Hospital.
His BHF-funded Travelling Fellowship to St Louis USA in 1987 provided the platform for his subsequent career in cardiovascular research. For the past 30 years he has led a bench-to-bedside programme investigating the molecular basis of pulmonary hypertension and evaluating new treatments. His work, supported throughout by the British Heart Foundation, has contributed to the development of two new classes of drug for pulmonary hypertension, namely phosphodiesterase inhibitors and soluble guanylate cyclase stimulators. His current work uses genetics, proteomics and metabolomics to define disease pathways in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension with the aim of identifying novel druggable targets and personalised medicines. He is developing a treatment based on inhibition of zinc transport and leading a study evaluating the place of Imatinib in the management of pulmonary arterial hypertension using a novel trial design.
He was elected to the UK Academy of Medical Sciences in 2015. In 2023 he was awarded a Doctor of Science degree (DSc) from Imperial College and an honorary fellowship from the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine. He holds a Liebig Professorship at the Justus Liebig University of Giessen (since 2014). He is Past-President of the Pulmonary Vascular Research Institute, a global network of experts in the field (http://www.pvrinstitute.org).
Selected Publications
Journal Articles
Kariotis S, Jammeh E, Swietlik EM, et al. , 2022, Biological heterogeneity in idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension identified through unsupervised transcriptomic profiling of whole blood, Nature Communications, Vol:13, ISSN:2041-1723, Pages:1-1
Wilkins MR, 2022, Pulmonary Hypertension Dissecting a Complex Phenotype, Journal of the American College of Cardiology, Vol:80, ISSN:0735-1097, Pages:719-721
Rhodes C, Wharton J, Swietlik E, et al. , 2022, Using the plasma proteome for risk stratifying patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension, American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Vol:205, ISSN:1073-449X, Pages:1102-1111
Thanaj M, Mielke J, McGurk K, et al. , 2022, Genetic and environmental determinants of diastolic heart function, Nature Cardiovascular Research, Vol:1, ISSN:2731-0590, Pages:361-371
Harbaum L, Rhodes CJ, Wharton J, et al. , 2022, Mining the plasma proteome for insights into the molecular pathology of pulmonary arterial hypertension., American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Vol:205, ISSN:1073-449X, Pages:1-12
Kariotis S, Jammeh E, Swietlik EM, et al. , 2021, Biological heterogeneity in idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension identified through unsupervised transcriptomic profiling of whole blood, Nature Communications, Vol:12, ISSN:2041-1723, Pages:1-14
Toshner M, Church C, Harbaum L, et al. , 2021, Mendelian randomisation and experimental medicine approaches to IL-6 as a drug target in PAH, European Respiratory Journal, Vol:59, ISSN:0903-1936, Pages:1-11
Wilkins MR, 2021, Personalized medicine for pulmonary hypertension: the future management of pulmonary hypertension requires a new taxonomy, Clinics in Chest Medicine, Vol:42, ISSN:0272-5231, Pages:207-216
Bai W, Suzuki H, Huang J, et al. , 2020, A population-based phenome-wide association study of cardiac and aortic structure and function, Nature Medicine, Vol:26, ISSN:1078-8956, Pages:1654-1662
Rhodes C, Otero-Núñez P, Wharton J, et al. , 2020, Whole blood RNA profiles associated with pulmonary arterial hypertension and clinical outcome, American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Vol:202, ISSN:1073-449X, Pages:586-594
Turro E, Astle WJ, Megy K, et al. , 2020, Whole-genome sequencing of patients with rare diseases in a national health system, Nature, Vol:583, ISSN:0028-0836, Pages:96-102
Rhodes CJ, Batai K, Bleda M, et al. , 2019, Genetic determinants of risk in pulmonary arterial hypertension: international case-control studies and meta-analysis, Lancet Respiratory Medicine, Vol:7, ISSN:2213-2600, Pages:227-238
Gräf S, Haimel M, Bleda M, et al. , 2018, Identification of rare sequence variation underlying heritable pulmonary arterial hypertension, Nature Communications, Vol:9, ISSN:2041-1723, Pages:1-16
Hadinnapola C, Bleda M, Haimel M, et al. , 2017, Phenotypic characterisation of EIF2AK4 mutation carriers in a large cohort of patients diagnosed clinically with pulmonary arterial hypertension, Circulation, Vol:136, ISSN:0009-7322, Pages:2022-2033
Michelakis ED, Gurtu V, Webster L, et al. , 2017, Inhibition of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase improves pulmonary arterial hypertension in genetically susceptible patients, Science Translational Medicine, Vol:9, ISSN:1946-6234, Pages:1-13
Wilkins MR, 2017, Apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1 inhibition in pulmonary hypertension: too much to ASK?, American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Vol:197, ISSN:1073-449X, Pages:286-288
Rhodes CJ, Wharton J, Ghataorhe P, et al. , 2017, Plasma proteome analysis in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension: an observational cohort study, Lancet Respiratory Medicine, Vol:5, ISSN:2213-2600, Pages:717-726
Rhodes CJ, Ghataorhe P, Wharton J, et al. , 2017, Plasma metabolomics implicate modified transfer RNAs and altered bioenergetics in the outcome of pulmonary arterial hypertension, Circulation, Vol:135, ISSN:0009-7322, Pages:460-475
Zhao L, Oliver E, Maratou K, et al. , 2015, The zinc transporter, ZIP12, regulates the pulmonary vascular response to chronic hypoxia, Nature, Vol:524, ISSN:0028-0836, Pages:356-360
Wilkins MR, Ghofrani H-A, Weissmann N, et al. , 2015, Pathophysiology and Treatment of High-Altitude Pulmonary Vascular Disease, Circulation, Vol:131, ISSN:0009-7322, Pages:582-590
Wilkins MR, Aldashev AA, Wharton J, et al. , 2014, α1-A680T Variant in GUCY1A3 as a Candidate Conferring Protection From Pulmonary Hypertension Among Kyrgyz Highlanders, Circulation-Cardiovascular Genetics, Vol:7, ISSN:1942-325X, Pages:920-U505
Wojciak-Stothard B, Abdul-Salam VB, Lao KH, et al. , 2014, Aberrant chloride intracellular channel 4 expression contributes to endothelial dysfunction in pulmonary arterial hypertension, Circulation, Vol:129, ISSN:0009-7322, Pages:1770-1780
Ghofrani HA, D'Armini AM, Grimminger F, et al. , 2013, Riociguat for the treatment of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension., New England Journal of Medicine
Zhao L, Ashek A, Wang L, et al. , 2013, Heterogeneity in lung 18FDG uptake in PAH: potential of dynamic 18FDG-PET with kinetic analysis as a bridging biomarker for pulmonary remodeling targeted treatments, Circulation
Rhodes CJ, Wharton J, Boon RA, et al. , 2013, Reduced microRNA-150 is associated with poor survival in pulmonary arterial hypertension., American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Vol:187, Pages:294-302
Zhao L, Chen C-N, Hajji N, et al. , 2012, Histone Deacetylation Inhibition in Pulmonary Hypertension Therapeutic Potential of Valproic Acid and Suberoylanilide Hydroxamic Acid, Circulation, Vol:126, ISSN:0009-7322, Pages:455-+
Wojciak-Stothard B, Zhao L, Oliver E, et al. , 2012, Role of RhoB in the Regulation of Pulmonary Endothelial and Smooth Muscle Cell Responses to Hypoxia, Circulation Research, Vol:110, ISSN:0009-7330, Pages:1423-+
Rhodes CJ, Wharton J, Howard L, et al. , 2011, Iron deficiency in pulmonary arterial hypertension: a potential therapeutic target, European Respiratory Journal, Vol:38, ISSN:0903-1936, Pages:1453-1460
Schermuly RT, Ghofrani HA, Wilkins MR, et al. , 2011, Mechanisms of disease: pulmonary arterial hypertension, Nature Reviews Cardiology, Vol:8, ISSN:1759-5002, Pages:443-455
Rhodes CJ, Howard LS, Busbridge M, et al. , 2011, Iron Deficiency and Raised Hepcidin in Idiopathic Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension Clinical Prevalence, Outcomes, and Mechanistic Insights, Journal of the American College of Cardiology, Vol:58, ISSN:0735-1097, Pages:300-309
Rhodes CJ, Wharton J, Howard LS, et al. , 2011, Red cell distribution width outperforms other potential circulating biomarkers in predicting survival in idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension, Heart, Vol:97, ISSN:1355-6037, Pages:1054-1060
Abdul-Salam VB, Wharton J, Cupitt J, et al. , 2010, Proteomic Analysis of Lung Tissues From Patients With Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension, Circulation, Vol:122, ISSN:0009-7322, Pages:2058-U282
Wilkins MR, Ali O, Bradlow W, et al. , 2010, Simvastatin as a Treatment for Pulmonary Hypertension Trial, American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Vol:181, ISSN:1073-449X, Pages:1106-1113
Archer SL, Weir EK, Wilkins MR, 2010, Basic Science of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension for Clinicians New Concepts and Experimental Therapies, Circulation, Vol:121, ISSN:0009-7322, Pages:2045-U175
Michelakis ED, Wilkins MR, Rabinovitch M, 2008, Emerging concepts and translational priorities in pulmonary arterial hypertension, Circulation, Vol:118, ISSN:0009-7322, Pages:1486-1495
Nickel N, Kempf T, Tapken H, et al. , 2008, Growth differentiation factor-15 in idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension, American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Vol:178, ISSN:1073-449X, Pages:534-541
Wilkins MR, Wharton J, Grimminger F, et al. , 2008, Phosphodiesterase inhibitors for the treatment of pulmonary hypertension, European Respiratory Journal, Vol:32, ISSN:0903-1936, Pages:198-209
Aldashev AA, Kojonazarov BK, Amatov TA, et al. , 2005, Phosphodiesterase type 5 and high altitude pulmonary hypertension, Thorax, Vol:60, ISSN:0040-6376, Pages:683-687
Wharton J, Strange JW, Moller GMO, et al. , 2005, Antiproliferative effects of phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibition in human pulmonary artery cells, American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Vol:172, ISSN:1073-449X, Pages:105-113
Paul GA, Gibbs JSR, Boobis AR, et al. , 2005, Bosentan decreases the plasma concentration of sildenafil when coprescribed in pulmonary hypertension, British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, Vol:60, ISSN:0306-5251, Pages:107-112
Wilkins MR, Paul GA, Strange JW, et al. , 2005, Sildenafil versus endothelin receptor antagonist for pulmonary hypertension (SERAPH) study, American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Vol:171, ISSN:1073-449X, Pages:1292-1297
Khoo JP, Zhao L, Alp NJ, et al. , 2005, Pivotal role for endothelial tetrahydrobiopterin in pulmonary hypertension, Circulation, Vol:111, ISSN:0009-7322, Pages:2126-2133