Rate My Professor Eddy Kizana

Professor Eddy Kizana, MBBS, PhD, FRACP, is a Professor (Level E) in Sydney Medical School at the University of Sydney, promoted to this position in 2024. He directs the Centre for Heart Research at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research (WIMR) and works as a cardiologist at Westmead Hospital. Additionally, he serves on the Executive Management Committee of the Westmead Applied Research Centre (WARC). Kizana completed his MBBS and PhD at the University of Sydney, earning his PhD from the Faculty of Medicine in 2006. He is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians, with training completed between 1999 and 2001. His career includes developing a dedicated research program at WIMR focused on translational gene therapy for cardiac diseases.

Kizana's academic interests lie in cardiac gene therapy, specializing in adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector development and their use in preclinical models of human heart conditions, including tachyarrhythmias, genetic cardiomyopathies, and post-infarct remodeling. This highly collaborative research aims to create next-generation vectors to enable effective human cardiac gene therapy. He has received prestigious funding, such as NHMRC Ideas Grants: $1,603,928.40 in 2024 for 'Creation of Next Generation Vectors for Cardiac Gene Therapy'; $1,558,213.50 in 2026 for 'Definitive and Personalised Therapy for Genetic Heart Disease'; and an earlier NHMRC Ideas Grant in 2019. Other awards include a Medical Research Future Fund grant in 2023 and the ALCC Award in 2015. Key publications include 'Adeno-associated virus–mediated gene therapy for cardiac tachyarrhythmia: A systematic review and meta-analysis' (Heart Rhythm, 2024); 'Development of new adeno-associated virus capsid variants for targeted gene delivery to human cardiomyocytes' (Molecular Therapy - Methods & Clinical Development, 2023); 'Gene therapy in cardiology: is a cure for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy on the horizon?' (Canadian Journal of Cardiology, 2024); 'Potential Applications for Targeted Gene Therapy to Protect Against Anthracycline Cardiotoxicity' (JACC: CardioOncology, 2021); and 'Recombinant Adeno-Associated Viral Vector-Mediated Gene Transfer of hTBX18 Generates Pacemaker Cells from Ventricular Cardiomyocytes'. Kizana mentors PhD and Honours students and contributes to advancements in cardiovascular precision medicine.