Dr Samantha J. Pitt

Reader

Researcher profile

Phone

+44 (0)1334 46 3516

Email

sjp24@st-andrews.ac.uk

 

Research areas

In healthy individuals, the controlled release of calcium causes the heart to beat strongly.  Calcium is released through specialised gates called ryanodine receptors (RyR2). In patients with heart failure and fatal arrhythmias the release of calcium becomes erratic leading to weakened contraction of heart muscle and cell death. Using a combination of low noise electrophysiological recordings in combination with molecular and biochemical methods my group investigates intracellular calcium dynamics and the molecular function of RyR2 and other ion channels that are present on intracellular organelles. The aim of our research is to try to understand what happens to channel function under pathophysiological conditions.

PhD supervision

• Stephen Hierons
• Struan Loughlin
• Jordan Marsh
• Jothi Letchumy Mahendra Kumar
• Quenton Hurst
• Richard Edel
• Xueyu Guo
• Claudia Harper

Selected publications

• 6 Does mitsugumin 23 play a role in doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity?

  Abraham, K., Dorward, A. M., Hurst, Q. & Pitt, S. J., 1 Apr 2023, In: Heart. 109, Suppl 2, p. A2-A2 1 p.

  Research output: Contribution to journal › Abstract › peer-review

• Open access

  Editorial: Insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease

  Stewart, A. J., Tuncay, E., Pitt, S. J. & Rainbow, R. D., 4 Aug 2023, In: Frontiers in Endocrinology. 14, 3 p., 1266173.

  Research output: Contribution to journal › Editorial › peer-review

• Open access

  Magnesium deficiency and cardiometabolic disease

  Fritzen, R., Davies, A., Veenhuizen, M., Campbell, M., Pitt, S. J., Ajjan, R. A. & Stewart, A. J., 17 May 2023, In: Nutrients. 15, 10, 19 p., 2355.

  Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

• Open access

  The role of Zn²⁺ in shaping intracellular Ca²⁺ dynamics in the heart

  Dorward, A. M., Stewart, A. J. & Pitt, S. J., 16 Jun 2023, In: Journal of General Physiology. 155, 7, 18 p., e202213206.

  Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

• Open access

  A rare missense variant in the ATP2C2 gene is associated with language impairment and related measures

  Martinelli, A., Rice, M., Talcott, J. B., Diaz, R., Smith, S., Hashim Raza, M., Snowling, M. J., Hulme, C., Stein, J., Hayiou-Thomas, M. E., Hawi, Z., Kent, L., Pitt, S. J., Newbury, D. F. & Paracchini, S., 15 Jun 2021, In: Human Molecular Genetics. 30, 12, p. 1160–1171 12 p., ddab111.

  Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

• Open access

  Albumin-mediated alteration of plasma zinc speciation by fatty acids modulates blood clotting in type-2 diabetes

  Sobczak, A. I. S., Katundu, K. G. H., Phoenix, F. A., Khazaipoul, S., Yu, R., Lampiao, F., Stefanowicz, F., Blindauer, C. A., Pitt, S. J., Smith, T. K., Ajjan, R. A. & Stewart, A. J., 21 Mar 2021, In: Chemical Science. 12, 11, p. 4079-4093 15 p.

  Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

• Deep tissue contractility sensing with biointegrated microlasers

  Schubert, M., Woolfson, L., Barnard, I. R. M., Dorward, A. M., Casement, B., Caixeiro, S., Morton, A., Robertson, G. B., Appleton, P. L., Miles, G. B., Tucker, C. S., Pitt, S. J. & Gather, M. C., 2021, Novel Techniques in Microscopy, NTM 2021. The Optical Society, NW3C.2. (Optics InfoBase Conference Papers).

  Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution

• Open access

  Levothyroxine treatment and the risk of cardiac arrhythmias – focus on the patient submitted to thyroid surgery

  Gluvic, Z., Obradovic, M., Stewart, A. J., Essack, M., Pitt, S. J., Samardzic, V., Soskic, S., Gojobori, T. & Isenovic, E. R., 4 Nov 2021, In: Frontiers in Endocrinology. 12, 12 p., 758043.

  Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

• Open access

  Lipidomic profiling of plasma free fatty acids in type-1 diabetes highlights specific changes in lipid metabolism

  Sobczak, A. I. S., Pitt, S. J., Smith, T. K., Ajjan, R. A. & Stewart, A. J., Jan 2021, In: Biochimica et Biophysica Acta - Molecular and Cell Biology of Lipids. 1866, 1, 9 p., 158823.

  Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

• A rare missense variant in the ATP2C2 gene is associated with developmental language disorder (DLD)

  Martinelli, A., Rice, M., Smith, S., Talcott, J., Stein, J., Kent, L., Hayiou-Thomas, M., Newbury, D., Hulme, C., Pitt, S. & Paracchini, S., 1 Dec 2020, p. 396-397. 2 p.

  Research output: Contribution to conference › Poster › peer-review

 

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