Simpson Named Smith Lecturer by American Heart Association

Paul Simpson, MD, a cardiologist at the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center (SFVAMC) whose biomedical research is supported through NCIRE-The Veterans Health Research Institute, has been named the 2010 Thomas Smith Memorial Lecturer by the Council on Basic Cardiovascular Sciences at the American Heart Association (AHA).

Simpson, who is also a professor of medicine at the UCSF, will deliver his lecture on Monday, Nov. 15 at the AHA Scientific Sessions 2010 meeting in Chicago, Illinois. The lecture was established in 1997 to honor Thomas W. Smith, a pioneer in the application of biochemical, cellular, and molecular approaches to investigative cardiac contractility – the study of the ability of the heart to contract.

In his research, Simpson has focused on the discovery of potential new drugs to treat heart failure, one of the most common causes of hospitalization and death among veterans and in the United States in general. He has identified a promising drug target, alpha-1-adrenergic receptors, and has been working to translate this finding into clinical use.

The American Heart Association is a national voluntary health agency whose mission is to build healthier lives, free of cardiovascular diseases and stroke.

NCIRE is a self-funded private nonprofit research institute, established to promote and administer health research at SFVAMC. It is the largest research institute associated with a VA medical center in the United States. NCIRE’s mission is to advance veterans health through research.