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Dr. S.R. Wayne Chen

PhD

Positions

Full Member

Hotchkiss Brain Institute

Full Member

Libin Cardiovascular Institute

Professor

Cumming School of Medicine, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology

Contact information

Phone number

Office: +1 (403) 220-4235

Location

Office: HRICGAC58

Background

Educational Background

B.S. Electrical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 1982

Doctor of Philosophy Biochemistry, University of Western Ontario, 1989

Research

Areas of Research

Cardiac Arrhythmias and Neurodegenerative Disorders

The Chen lab is interested in the roles of intracellular calcium handling in cardiac arrhythmias and neurodegenerative/neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease. A major focus of current investigation is to understand how dysfunction of intracellular calcium release channels, ryanodine receptors (RyRs) and inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors (IP3Rs), contributes to the pathogenesis of these disorders. A variety of cutting-edge techniques and platforms are being used to study the disease mechanisms and treatments at the molecular, cellular, and whole animal levels. 

Drug development for cardiac arrhythmias and Alzheimer's Disease

Participation in university strategic initiatives

Awards

  • Research Prize, Alberta Innovates-Health Solutions (AIHS). 2010
  • Scientist, , Alberta Innovates-Health Solutions (AIHS). 2010
  • Keynote Lecturer, XIX International Society for Heart Research (ISHR) Congress, Latin American Section, Buenos Aires, Argentina. 2011
  • Scientist , Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research. 2005
  • Senior Scholar, Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research, 2000
  • Sarrazin Award Lectureship, Canadian Physiological Society. 2024
  • Sir John Eccles Lecture, University of Otago. 2024
  • Researcher of the Year Award, Libin Cardiovascular Institute, University of Calgary . 2020
  • Heart and Stroke Foundation Chair in Cardiovascular Research, Heart and Stroke Foundation. 2024
  • The James O. Davis Distinguished Lecturer and Chancellor’s Distinguished Lecturer, Dalton Cardiovascular Research Centre, University of Missouri. 2016

Publications

  • Cardiac Ryanodine Receptor Calcium Release Deficiency Syndrome. Bo Sun, Jinjing Yao, Mingke Ni, Jinhong Wei, Xiaowei Zhong, Wenting Guo, Lin Zhang, Ruiwu Wang, Krystien V.V. Lieve, Anders K. Broendberg, Thomas M. Roston, Ivan Blankoff, Janneke A. Kammeraad, Johannes von Alvensleben, Julieta Lazarte, Alexander Vallmitjana, Raul Benitez, Leif Hove-Madsen, Carlo Napolitano, Robert A. Hegele, Michael Fill, Shubhayan Sanatani, Arthur A.M. Wilde, Jason D. Roberts, Silvia G. Priori, Henrik K. Jensen and S. R. Wayne Chen . Science Translational Medicine 13(579): . eaba7287. (2021)
  • Limiting RyR2 Open Time Prevents Alzheimer's Disease-Related Neuronal Hyperactivity and Memory Loss but Not β-Amyloid Accumulation . Jinjing Yao, Bo Sun, Adam Institoris, Xiaoqin Zhan, Wenting Guo, Zhenpeng Song, Yajing Liu, Florian Hiess, Andrew K J Boyce, Mingke Ni, Ruiwu Wang, Henk Ter Keurs, Thomas G Back, Michael Fill, Roger J Thompson, Ray W Turner, Grant R Gordon, S. R. Wayne Chen. Cell Reports 32(12):. 108169. (2020)