Vera Ralevic

Contact

• workRoom E34d The University of Nottingham Medical School
  Queen's Medical Centre
  Nottingham
  NG7 2UH
  UK
• work0115 82 30183
• fax0115 82 30142
• vera.ralevic@nottingham.ac.uk

Research Summary

Interests

• Regulation of blood vessel contractile and vasorelaxant function in health and disease.
• Perivascular sympathetic and sensory nerves.
• Endothelium; purines (P1 and P2 receptors); cannabinoids; vanilloids.

Techniques

• Pharmacological measurement of vasocontractile and vasorelaxant function in isolated vascular beds (eg, mesenteric, renal) and isolated blood vessels (eg, coronary, aorta).
• Pharmacological measurement of sympathetic and sensory nerve vasomotor function and neurotransmitter release (by HPLC and ELISA) mRNA extraction, RT-PCR.

Projects

• Molecular and pharmacological characterisation of P2Y1 receptors in porcine coronary artery (British Heart Foundation).
• P2 receptors in blood vessels (The Royal Society).
• Cannabinoid modulation of perivascular sensory neurotransmission (Servier, Paris & The University of Nottingham).
• Cannabinoid modulation of perivascular sympathetic neurotransmission (The Royal Society).

Centre Collaborators

• Dr. William Dunn

UK Collaborators

• Darren Smart (GlaxoSmithKline).
• Dr C Hoyle (UCL).

Future Research

I carry out research into mechanisms of local control of vascular tone by perivascular nerves and endothelial cells. Current research interests include receptors for purines, cannabinoids and vanilloids, sensory nerves, and mechanisms underlying impaired vascular contractility in endotoxaemia.