Heart disease research in Aberdeen receives £1.1 million boost
Innovative study aims to develop new cholesterol-lowering treatment
Last updated 13th May 2026
A major research project aimed at creating new solutions for heart disease has been launched at the University of Aberdeen, thanks to a £1.1 million grant from the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
Led by the Cardiovascular and Diabetes Centre at the university, the five-year programme will explore a novel approach to combatting atherosclerosis—a build-up of fatty deposits in the arteries responsible for most heart attacks and strokes.
Researchers previously discovered that blocking the enzyme PTP1B in immune cells can help prevent fat accumulation. Using the drug Trodusquemine, the team achieved similar results in human cells as seen in mice, including lowered levels of 'bad' cholesterol.
International Collaboration for Research
The new BHF funding will enable further research to potentially move towards human clinical trials. The project will involve international partners from universities in Liverpool, Leeds, Dundee, Copenhagen, Leiden, and Nantes.
Professor Mirela Delibegovic, who is leading the study, explained that the focus will be on individuals at high risk of heart disease due to inherited high cholesterol, exploring the potential for a new cholesterol-lowering treatment.
“This funding allows us to take an important next step. We’ll be studying this approach in people who are at higher risk of heart disease to see whether it has the potential to move towards future clinical trials. It’s early-stage work, but if the results are encouraging, it could eventually open the door to a new type of cholesterol-lowering treatment for people who currently have limited options,” Professor Delibegovic said.
The importance lies in preventing damage before it begins in those with high cholesterol from a young age. “What we want to find out is simple: could this approach one day be tested in clinical trials, and could it offer patients a new way to ‘block’ bad cholesterol from building up and depositing in their arteries?”
Potential for a New Treatment
Professor James Leiper, Director of Research at the British Heart Foundation, highlighted the urgency: “Atherosclerosis – a build-up of fatty material in the arteries – is common and can affect anyone. It can raise the risk of having a heart attack or stroke.
“Thanks to decades of research, we have effective medicines, like statins, to help protect people. But finding new ways to prevent these fatty build-ups in blood vessels is vital to develop new and potentially even more effective treatments, which is why we are delighted to support this early-stage research.”
The research is particularly significant given the statistic that every three minutes, someone in the UK dies from cardiovascular disease.