倪合宇院士荣获心血管科研领域两项大奖

加拿大血液服务机构（Canadian Blood Services）的高级科学家倪合宇院士（Dr. Heyu Ni）在2025年美国心脏协会国际中风会议（American Heart Association’s 2025 International Stroke Conference）上，因其关于急性缺血性中风治疗的临床前研究的顶级摘要荣获两项大奖。

保罗·达德利·怀特国际学者奖（Paul Dudley White International Scholar Award）由美国心脏协会每年颁发，旨在体现对全球心血管科学与医学卓越发展的愿景。该奖项授予每个国家提交的排名最高的研究摘要的第一作者。

今年，倪合宇院士不仅被授予代表加拿大的该项荣誉，还在2025年2月于加利福尼亚州洛杉矶举行的会议期间，获得了中风基础科学奖（Stroke Basic Science Award）。（供稿：晨枫2025年5月12日周一 加拿大多伦多）

https://www.blood.ca/en/research/our-research-stories/research-education-discovery/canadian-blood-services-scientist-0

Dr. Heyu Ni, a Canadian Blood Services senior scientist, has received two awards at the American Heart Association’s 2025 International Stroke Conference for a top-ranked abstract of pre-clinical research on treatment for acute ischemic stroke.

Awards for the Paul Dudley White International Scholar are presented annually by the Association to reflect a vision for global excellence in cardiovascular science and medicine. Top-ranked abstract submissions are selected from each country and the primary authors honoured with this award. Dr. Heyu Ni was acknowledged as the recipient of this award for Canadian submissions as well as the recipient of the Stroke Basic Science Award during the conference in Los Angeles, California, in February 2025.

Dr. Ni’s winning abstract is titledA first-in-class humanized antibody fragment targeting platelet glycoprotein Iba: a comprehensive preclinical study of CA1001 for the treatment of acute ischemic stroke

. The research describes a potential drug known as CA1001 which was developed from a monoclonal antibody and patented by Canadian Blood Services ten years ago. This potential drug has been further developed to target a specific receptor on the surface of platelets known as glycoprotein Iba. Platelets are the component of blood which play an important role in clotting and glycoprotein Iba is responsible for binding von Willebrand factor and other factors. When functioning appropriately, these factors help platelets initiate clotting to stop bleeding when an injury occurs; however, when a blood clot (called a thrombus) forms inappropriately (known as thrombosis) it can cause serious health issues such as heart attack and stroke. An acute ischemic stroke is caused when thrombosis causes an occlusion (or blockage) in a vessel that prevents proper blood flow to the brain.

While this platelet glycoprotein has been of interest for thrombosis research for decades, this is the first time a potential drug targeting the specific glycoprotein Iba receptor has been developed.

Dr. Ni’s abstract outlines the in vitro and in vivo models used in the lab to test the extent and duration of the drug’s effect, along with toxicology studies that investigated rates of adverse effects to understand safety and tolerability. Dr. Sladjana Slavkovic and Dr. Miguel Neves are co-authors on this research, having received Canadian Blood Services Postdoctoral Fellowship Awards while working in Dr. Ni's lab.

Says Ni, “As glycoprotein Iba - von Willebrand factor interaction initiates the early thrombus formation and mediates the late vessel occlusion, this new CA1001 may have great potential in controlling heart attack and stroke.”

This research is in a preclinical stage, meaning further clinical trials would be required before wider therapeutic use of the proposed drug; however, Dr. Ni is hopeful.

Dr. Ni joined Canadian Blood Services in 2001 and is also a scientist at the Keenan Centre for Biomedical Science at St. Michael’s Hospital, a site of Unity Health Toronto. The Ni lab at St. Michael’s undertakes discovery research as part of Canadian Blood Services’ Innovation & Portfolio Management team with a focus on platelet biology, immunohematology, hemostasis and thrombosis. This research aims to help develop new diagnostic methods and optimize treatments for clotting disorders as well as alloimmune and autoimmune disorders.