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Cambridge Cardiovascular

 

Research

Dr Nus obtained her PhD at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid working on the interaction diet-oxidative stress in cardiovascular disease and for which she was awarded two Prizes for the best PhD Thesis from the Spanish Royal Academy of Doctors and the Universidad Complutense in 2007. She subsequently studied the role of Notch signalling pathway in aortic estenosis and atherosclerosis with Dr. JL de la Pompa in the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC) where she was awarded a Juan de la Cierva post-doctoral Fellowship by the Spanish National Institute of Health. She then moved to Cambridge to study the role of Notch and B cells in aterosclerosis with Prof. Ziad Mallat.

She recently discovered that the interaction of two specific immune players called Marginal Zone B cells and T follicular helper cells play a determinant role in atherosclerosis.  In response to a high fat diet  Marginal Zone B cells activate an homeostatic protective programme that it is translated into modulation of T follicular helper cell activation and differentiation. She is currently elucidating how diet and gut microbiota modulate the interaction Marginal Zone B-T follicular helper cells and how this impacts on atherosclerosis. She is particularly interested in identifying the metabolic pathways that drive T follicular helper cells function during atherosclerosis

Lab Members

James Harrison (Research Assistant)

Dr Despoina Giakomidi (Post-doctoral researcher)

Ms Shanna Chen (Visiting PhD Student)

Outside Cambridge Cardio Directory Collaborators

Dr Christian Frezza, MRC Cambridge

Prof Christoph Reinhardt

Prof Greg Hannon, CRUK Cambridge

Publications

Key publications: 

Please follow the link to Pubmed for a full list of publications

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=meritxell%20nus

  1. Nus, M., Basatemur, G., Galan, M., Cros-Brunsó, L., Zhao, T., Masters, L., Harrison, J., et al. NR4A1 deletion in marginal zone B cells exacerbates atherosclerosis in mice. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 2020.
  2. Nus M, Sage AP, LuY, Masters L, LamBYH, NewlandS, TsiantoulasD, RaffortJ, Finigan A, KittL, FiggN, SchirmbeckR, KneillingM, YeoGSH, BinderC, de la PompaJL, Mallat Z. Marginal zone B cells control follicular helper T cell response to high cholesterol diet. Nat Med 2017; 23(5):601-10.
  3. Sage AP, Nus M, Bagchi Chakraborty J, Tsiantoulas D, Newland SA, Finigan AJ, Masters L, Binder CJ, MAllat Z.  X-box Binding Protein-1 dependent plasma cell responses limit the developement of aterosclerosis.  Circ Res 2017; 121:270-281.
  4. Nus M, Martínez-Poveda B, Macgrogan D, Chevre R, D´Amato G, Sbroggio M, Rodriguez C, Martínez-Gonzalez J, Vicente A, Hidalgo A, de la Pompa JL. Endothelial Notch signaling is required for the NF-kB driven inflammatory response in atherosclerosis. Cardiovasc Res 2016; 112:568-580.
  5. Sage AP, Nus M, Baker L, Finigan A, Masters L, Mallat Z. Regulatory B cell-specific interleukin-10 is dispensable for atherosclerosis development in mice. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 2015;35:1770-3.
  6. Nus M, MacGrogan D, Martínez-Poveda B, Benito Y, Casanova JC, Fernández-Avilés F, Bermejo J, de la Pompa JL. Diet-induced aortic valve disease in mice haploinsufficient for the Notch pathway effector RBPJK/CSL.  Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol  2011; 31:1580-8
Senior Research Associate
BHF Basic Science Intermediate Fellow

Affiliations

Classifications: 
Specialities: 
Person keywords: 
T follicular helper cells
high cholesterol diet
marginal zone B cells
atherosclerosis
B cells, T cells
notch signalling pathway
metabolism