Dr Andrew MN Walker

Profile

I graduated from the University of Sheffield in 2009 with BMedSci (1st Class Hons) and MBChB degrees. I was awarded membership of the Royal College of Physicians of London in 2012, before joining the University of Leeds in 2013, initially with a British Heart Foundation Research Scholarship. I was funded through a British Heart Foundation Clinical Research Training Fellowship between 2014 and 2017, following which I was awarded a PhD for my research project titled: Exploring the Role of the Insulin and Insulin-Like Growth Factor Receptors in Vascular Regeneration and Aging.

In 2017 I was appointed as a NIHR Academic Clinical Fellow in Cardiology based in the Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine (LICAMM) and Bradford Royal Infirmary. 

Since March 2019 I have continued my research work in LICAMM, with clinical responsibilities at Leeds General Infirmary as part of my appointment as a NIHR Academic Clinical Lecturer in Cardiology.

I have significant teaching interests, and was awarded Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) in 2019.  I am Duputy Action Group Lead for Student Education in LICAMM, and I lead the Introductory Programme and Cardiovascular Strand of Body Systems in Year 1 MBChB and was Co-Lead for IDEALS Year 2 until October 2021.  

In January 2022 I recieved a Leeds Institute for Teaching Excellence (LITE) Fellowship to work on a review of the MBChB curriculum:

Curriculum Redefined: A Representative Medical Curriculum to Reflect the Diverse Populations we Care for, and those we Educate. January 2022 onwards (3 year project).

Responsibilities

• LITE Fellow - A Representative Medical Curriculum
• Cardiovascular Strand Lead, Body Systems Yearr 1
• Introductory Programme Lead, Year 1

Research interests

My research interests include preclinical work investigating the role of the Insulin and Insulin-Like Growth Factor receptors in vascular regeneration and ageing.  I also conduct clinical research in the field of heart failure, with a particular interest in factors which influence the prognosis of patients with insulin resistance and diabetes.

Recent Publications:

Novel Paracrine Action of Endothelium Enhances Glucose Uptake in Muscle and Fat. Viswambharan, Walker AMN et al.  Circulation Research 2021 Sep 17;129(7):720-734. doi: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.121.319517. Epub 2021 Aug 21.  PMID: 34420367. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34420367/.  

Endothelial Insulin Receptors Promote VEGF-A Signaling via ERK1/2 and Sprouting Angiogenesis.  Walker AMN et al. Endocrinology 2021 Aug 1;162(8):bqab104.doi: 10.1210/endocr/bqab104. PMID: 34037749. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34037749/. 

Diabetes, gender and deterioration in estimated glomerular filtration rate in patients with chronic heart failure: Ten-year prospective cohort study.  Kearney J, Walker AMN et al.  Diab Vasc Dis Res. 2021 Jan-Feb;18(1):1479164120984433. doi: 10.1177/1479164120984433.  PMID: 33588611.  https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1479164120984433?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori%3Arid%3Acrossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub++0pubmed& Contributing author.

Association of heart failure and its comorbidities with loss of life expectancy.  Drozd M, Relton SD, Walker AMN et al.  Heart. 2020 Nov 5:heartjnl-2020-317833. doi: 10.1136/heartjnl-2020-317833. PMID: 33153996. https://heart.bmj.com/content/early/2020/11/05/heartjnl-2020-317833.long.  

Infection-Related Hospitalization in Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction: A Prospective Observational Cohort Study.  Circ Heart Fail. 2020 May;13(5):e006746. doi: 10.1161/CIRCHEARTFAILURE.119.006746.  Epub 2020 May 1. http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/158358/. 

Prevalence and Predictors of Sepsis Death in Patients With Chronic Heart Failure and Reduced Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction. Walker AMN et al.  JAHA 2018;7:e009684: https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/JAHA.118.009684. 

Ischemic Heart Disease Modifies the Association of Atrial Fibrillation With Mortality in Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction. Mercer BN et al.  JAHA 2018; 7:e009770: https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/JAHA.118.009770. 

Endothelial Insulin Receptor Restoration Rescues Vascular Function in Male Insulin Receptor Haploinsufficient Mice.  Sengupta A et al.  Endocrinology 2018; 159(8): 2917-25.

Socioeconomic deprivation and mode-specific outcomes in patients with chronic heart failure.  Witte KK et al.  Heart 2018; 104(12): 993-8.

Mortality Reduction Associated With β-Adrenoceptor Inhibition in Chronic Heart Failure Is Greater in Patients With Diabetes.  Witte KK et al.  Diabetes Care. 2018 Jan;41(1):136-142. doi: 10.2337/dc17-1406. Epub 2017 Oct 5.  PMID: 28982651. 

Endothelial SHIP2 Suppresses Nox2 NADPH Oxidase-Dependent Vascular Oxidative Stress, Endothelial Dysfunction, and Systemic Insulin Resistance.  Watt NT et al.  Diabetes. 2017 Nov;66(11):2808-2821. doi: 10.2337/db17-0062. Epub 2017 Aug 22.  PMID: 28830894.

Selective Enhancement of Insulin Sensitivity in the Endothelium In Vivo Reveals a Novel Proatherosclerotic Signaling Loop.  Viswambharan H et al.  Circulation Research. 2017 Mar 3;120(5):784-798. doi: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.116.309678. Epub 2016 Dec 5.  PMID: 27920123.  Accompanying Editorial (Siragusa M, Fisslthaler B. Insulin Keeps PYK-ing on eNOS: Enhanced Insulin Receptor Signaling Induces Endothelial Dysfunction. Circulation research 2017; 120(5): 748-50.)

Diabetes mellitus is associated with adverse structural and functional cardiac remodelling in chronic heart failure with reduced ejection fraction.  Walker AM et al.  Diabetes and Vascular Disease Research. 2016 Sep;13(5):331-40. doi: 10.1177/1479164116653342. Epub 2016 Jun 22.  PMID: 27334485. .

Performance of 2014 NICE defibrillator implantation guidelines in heart failure risk stratification.  Cubbon RM et al.  Heart. 2016 May 15;102(10):735-40. PMID:26857212.  Accompanying Editorial (Cowie MR. Updated guidance from NICE on implantable defibrillators: does it work in real life? Heart 2016; 102(10): 731-2.). 

Ambulatory heart rate range predicts mode-specific mortality and hospitalisation in chronic heart failure. Cubbon RM et al.  Heart. 2016 Feb;102(3):223-9. PMID:26674986. 

Sudden cardiac death in patients with diabetes mellitus and chronic heart failure Diabetes and Vascular Disease Research. 2015 Jul;12(4):228-33.  Walker AMN et al.  PMID:25861812 Review. 

Restoring Akt1 activity in outgrowth endothelial cells from South Asian men rescues vascular reparative potential.  Cubbon RM et al.  Stem Cells. 2014 Oct;32(10):2714-23.  PMID:24916783.

Contemporary treatment strategies for Type 2 diabetes-related macrovascular disease. Walker AMN et al.  Expert Review of Endocrinology & Metabolism. Vol. 9 , Iss. 6,2014. 

A 16 year old boy with chest pain. Walker AMN et al.  British Medical Journal. 2014 Oct 15;349:g6172. PMID:25319730. 

Cardiology day case unit: the way to manage chronic cardiovascular conditions cost-effectively in future.  Walker AMN et al.  Clinical Medicine. 2012 Aug;12(4):398-9.  PMID: 25319730. 

Qualifications

• BMedSci (Hons)
• MBChB
• MRCP (London)
• PhD
• FHEA

Professional memberships

• British Cardiovascular Society
• American Heart Association
• Member of the Royal College of Physicians of London
• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (Advance HE)

Student education

I am a current Leeds Institute for Teaching Excellence (LITE) Fellow working on a review of the MBChB curriculum:

Curriculum Redefined: A Representative Medical Curriculum to Reflect the Diverse Populations we Care for, and those we Educate. January 2022 onwards (3 year project).

I Lead the Introductory Programme for 1^st Year MBChB

I Lead the Cardiovascular Strand for Year 1 Body Systems MBChB

I Lead the Internal Medicine Training (IMT) Visiting Lecturer Scheme 

I Supervise the Specialist Foundation Programme (Medical Education) at UoL

I Supervise students for MRes and iBSc (Medical Education) degree programmes.

I am a Personal Tutor for students on the MBChB Programme.

I Lecture on the Cardiac Physiology degree programme

I provide ward and clinic-based teaching to MBChB students on clinical attachment

I teach Internal Medical Trainees in the Yorkshire and the Humber region on a range of topics within Cardiology along with skills in critical analysis and the interpretation of evidence and guidelines.

I planned and delivered the Leeds Learning to Teach Programme, providing a foundation in pedagogic theory alongside practical experience in a range of teaching settings for undergraduates on the MBChB programme.

In June 2019 I was appointed Deputy Action Group Lead for Student Education in LICAMM

Research groups and institutes

• Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine
• Discovery and Translational Science
• Cardiometabolic
• Cardiac Physiology
• Multidisciplinary Cardiovascular Research Centre