Ian M C Dixon

Biography

B.Sc. (Hons) (Zoology), Univ. of Manitoba, 1983 M.Sc. (Physiology), Univ. of Manitoba, 1987 Ph.D. (Physiology), Univ. of Manitoba, 1990 Assistant Professor (Physiology), Univ. of Manitoba, 1992-98 Associate Professor (Physiology), Univ. of Manitoba, 1998-present Professor (Physiology), Univ. of Manitoba, 2003-present

Research Interest

Cardiac fibrosis is the abnormal expansion of the cardiac extracellular matrix, and occurs in most kinds of heart disease; this lab is focussed on the mechanisms underlying cardiac fibrosis. Angiotensin may act as a master switch in releasing or activating other growth factors or proteins that also contribute to cardiac fibrosis and heart failure. Smad proteins are included in this group and results from our lab point to their importance in the pathogenesis of cardiac fibrosis. We also study a separate novel cytokine that seems to stimulate myofibroblast function - cardiotrophin – 1 (CT-1). CT-1 is overexpessed in heart tissues after infarction and in serum of patients with heart failure. The behaviour of target cells of these signals - i.e., myofibroblasts - are the focus of the laboratory . Our work will clarify the molecular mechanisms of cardiac fibrosis.