Rate My Professor Martin Bennett

Professor Martin Bennett holds the British Heart Foundation Chair of Cardiovascular Sciences at the University of Cambridge's Department of Medicine, where he serves as Head of the Section of Cardiovascular and Respiratory Medicine. An Honorary Consultant Cardiologist at Cambridge University Hospitals and Royal Papworth Hospitals, he trained in cardiology in Birmingham and Cambridge. He directs the BHF Cambridge Centre for Research Excellence, the Cambridge Cardiovascular Interdisciplinary Research Centre, and the NIHR Cambridge BRC Cardiovascular and Respiratory Theme. Elected a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences (FMedSci) in 2007, Bennett was a former British Heart Foundation Clinician Scientist.

His research focuses on the vascular biology of atherosclerosis, particularly vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation, death, and senescence, including protective mechanisms against DNA damage and the role of sirtuins in preventing vascular disease. Bennett's clinical research employs virtual histology intravascular ultrasound (VH-IVUS), optical coherence tomography (OCT), biomechanical plaque analysis, and AI-based methods to identify vulnerable plaques. Techniques include cell and tissue culture, RNA sequencing, virus-mediated gene transfer, in vivo atherosclerosis models, and biophysical modelling. Key publications include Wang et al., 'Vascular smooth muscle cell senescence promotes atherosclerosis and features of plaque vulnerability' (Circulation, 2015); Shah et al., 'Defective base excision repair of oxidative DNA damage in vascular smooth muscle cells promotes atherosclerosis' (Circulation, 2018); Grootaert et al., 'SIRT6 deacetylase is essential to protect vascular smooth muscle cells from senescence and against atherosclerosis' (Circulation Research, 2021); Costopoulos et al., 'Impact of combined plaque structural stress and wall shear stress on coronary plaque progression, regression and changes in composition' (European Heart Journal, 2019); and Gu et al., 'Comprehensive biomechanical and anatomical atherosclerotic plaque metrics predict major adverse cardiovascular events' (Atherosclerosis, 2024).