Research
BHF Professor Andrew Baker awarded prestigious RSE Sir James Black Medal
Congratulations to BHF Professor Andrew Baker from the University of Edinburgh who has been awarded the Royal Society of Edinburgh Sir James Black Medal for his exceptional contribution to research across Scotland.
The award is recognition of Professor Baker’s leading work in cardiovascular science. His research in gene therapy, regenerative medicine and vascular biology is helping to advance future treatments for heart disease.
Gene therapy to change lives
We’ve been funding Professor Baker’s research for more than 25 years, and he has been BHF Chair of Translational Cardiovascular Sciences since 2011. He is interested in how the cardiovascular system responds to damage, particularly the mechanisms that influence repair and regeneration.
His lab is developing new treatments, such as gene and RNA therapies, that could help patients with damage to their cardiovascular system.
Professor Baker is one of the three lead investigators for the Medical Research Council/British Heart Foundation Centre of Research Excellence in Advanced Cardiac Therapies (REACT). The centre aims to develop the first gene therapies to stimulate heart repair and regeneration in patients following a heart attack and in those with established heart failure. Launched in 2025, it is supported by an initial investment of £26 million from the MRC and BHF over seven years.
Professor Bryan Williams, our Chief Scientific and Medical Officer, said:
“We would like to congratulate Professor Baker on this fantastic and well-deserved award. Professor Baker’s research focusses on turning lab discoveries into real benefits for patients, and it is having a transformational impact in Scotland and beyond. The RSE’s Sir James Black Medal is a fitting acknowledgement of this.”