Dunja Aksentijevic

Professor Dunja Aksentijevic is a Professor of Cardiovascular Physiology and Metabolism at Queen Mary University of London’s William Harvey Research Institute. She holds a BSc (First Class) and PhD from the University of Hull, followed by postdoctoral roles at the University of Oxford and King’s College London. Currently, she leads MSc and MRes programs in Clinical Drug Development and Healthcare Research Methods.

Her research focuses on cardiac metabolism’s role in heart failure, diabetes, and chronic kidney disease. Notable projects include studying sodium’s impact on cardiac metabolism, metabolic remodelling in type 2 diabetes, and pregnancy-related cardiometabolic risks. Techniques like NMR spectroscopy and collaborations with institutions like AstraZeneca drive her work.

Awarded the Wellcome Trust Career Re-Entry Fellowship and multiple teaching excellence awards, she is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and European Society of Cardiology. Her team actively recruits PhD students and postdocs, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches to cardiovascular solutions.

Publications highlight breakthroughs in sodium’s role in heart failure and naked mole-rat cardiometabolic adaptations. Media engagements include BBC and Al Jazeera features, underscoring her global impact on cardiovascular science and education.