Margaret Lucitt

Biography

Margaret graduated with a BSc in Biochemistry from University College Cork, followed by a PhD in Cardiovascular Pharmacology at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA. This was followed by a postdoctoral position at the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland where she received a fellowships from the Irish Research Council for Science, Engineering & Technology. Research interests to date include the use of animal models (mouse and zebrafish) specifically looking at atherosclerosis and hypertension to investigate novel therapeutic pathways. The development of clinical diagnostic assays in the cardiovascular area to better assess antiplatelet therapy. Currently a lecturer in the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics in the School of Medicine she is involved in teaching pharmacology to dental and medical students through lectures and small group problem based learning. Ongoing research is to establish a strong cardiovascular research group which currently investigates statin effects.

Research Interest

The research of Dr Lucitt focuses on understanding mechanisms underlying cardiovascular disease, including atherosclerosis and thrombosis. Current emphasis is placed on how statin therapy mediates inflammatory and thrombotic effects outside of their lipid lowering ability in protecting against cardiovascular disease. Studies are carried out looking at inflammatory pathways in macrophage cells which constitutes the primary inflammatory cell in atherosclerotic plaques in blood vessels. Thrombotic effects following statin therapy are also investigated using microfluidic devices as well as standard aggregatory assays for assessment of platelet function. The goal is to identify new strategies to treat the inflammatory components of cardiovascular disease.