The Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute (VCCRI) is an independent research organisation committed to excellence in basic, physiological and translational cardiovascular research and training, as well as in the rapid application of research discoveries to patient care. Some of its major discoveries/achievements over the past 13 years include:
- Demonstration of an epigenetically inherited trait as the basis of disease: Nature Genet 2004;36:497-501; N Engl J Med 2007;356:697-705
- Delineation of a novel pathway for enzyme evolution: Mol Cell 2003;12:343-354
- Discovery of gene defects and the mechanisms by which they produce congenital heart disease (atrial septal defects) and dilated cardiomyopathies: Circ Res 2000;9:126-137; J Clin Invest 2004;113:357-369
- Demonstration of arterial stiffness as a major risk factor for premature heart disease: Circulation 2004;20:184-189
- Delineation of key pathways leading to vertebrate heart development: Cell 2002;110;713-723; Nature Genet 2002;3:544-556; Cell 2007; 128:947-59
- Delineation of critical pathways underlying muscle development and hypertrophy: Nature 1999;400:576-581; Dev Cell 2003;5:865-76; Dev Cell 2007;12:207-219
- Development of a transcript map of the mouse genome: Nature Genet 2001;29:194-2000
- Development of a stem cell therapy to treat heart disease: Lancet 2004;363:1735-1736
- Delineation of underlying mechanisms in cell function: PNAS 2005;102:16961-16966; Mol Cell 2007;26:145-155
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Programs
>The VCCRI has major basic programs in developmental biology using predominantly murine and zebrafish model systems, molecular cardiology and genetics, gene discovery, stem cell biology, and computational biology and bioinformatics. In addition, it has physiological/clinical research programs in cardiovascular mechanics; inherited cardiomyopathies, congenital and ischaemic heart diseases, transplantation biology and therapeutics, electrophysiology and biophysics, and cardiac/vascular interactions.
Funding
>The Institute's work is supported by peer-reviewed grants from agencies, such as the National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia, the Australian Research Council, the National Heart Foundation, the Wellcome Foundation, UK, and the National Institutes of Health, USA, as well as by a number of philanthropic foundations and by private and corporate donations.
Collaborations
>Strong inter-institutional interactions exist and are encouraged at the VCCRI, and its faculty enjoy collaborations with colleagues in many institutions, both national (e.g., University of Wollongong; St. Vincent's Institute, Melbourne; Children's Hospital & Medical Research Institute, Westmead; Centenary Institute; Garvan Institute; St. Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australian National University) and international (e.g., Stanford University; EMBL, Rome; Osaka University; Columbia University, NY; National Cancer Institute, Maryland; Vanderbilt University, Nashville; University of Cambridge; National Institute of Medical Research, London; Northwestern University, Chicago; University of Texas Southwestern, Dallas).
Training opportunities
>The VCCRI provides comprehensive training in cardiovascular research at both the undergraduate (BSc Hons) and graduate (PhD, MD, MSc) level through its affiliation with the University of New South Wales, as well as through interactions with other Australian and international universities.
Publications
>Research discoveries resulting from the Institute's work continue to be published in journals of the highest calibre, including The New England Journal of Medicine, Cell, Nature, EMBO Journal, Proceedings of the National Academy, Developmental Cell, Journal of Clinical Investigation, Nature Genetics, Lancet, Circulation Research, etc.
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