Dr Hilary Carswell
Reader
Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences
Personal statement
I am a Reader at University of Strathclyde with particular interests in brain damage and repair. After registering as a Pharmacist then obtaining my PhD at University of Glasgow, I pursued my academic career in preclinical stroke research as a postdoctoral researcher. I acquired an independant research fellowship from Research into Agening at the Wellcome Surgical Institute, University of Glasgow before joining SIPBS in 2007, where I am joined as a John Anderson Research Lecturer in in vivo Biology.
My research focuses on understanding mechanisms of brain damage and repair using two strategies namely inflammation and stem cells. I have particular interest in in vivo and in vitro models of brain damage and current research programmes include understanding how to promote success of stem cells for brain repair as well as targetting inflammation and the blood brain barrier in stroke. We maintain strong national and international collaborative links with stroke clinicians and researchers, immunologists and Biotech and Pharmaceutical Industry. My research group currently has 3 PhD students and 1 PDRA, funded an International Collaborative Grant from Saudi Arabia and by Joint Tenovus Scotland & Neurosciences Foundation and Thai Government.
I aim to generate student engagement and research aspirations in Pharmacy and Biomedical Science students and to promote opportunities in science in interdisciplinary areas. In 2018 I was Winner of Best Teacher in Faculty of Science Strathclyde Teaching Excellence Awards, which is evidence of success of my innovative teaching approaches. An example of a student’s quote ‘Her thoroughness, combined with her approachability, enthusiasm and expertise mark Hilary out as an exceptional teacher, who is devoted to her students’.
Prize And Awards
- Fellow of British Pharmacological Society (FBPhS)
- Recipient
- 2024
- PhD student and PDRA won bursaries for outstanding abstracts at international conference
- Recipient
- 1/6/2022
- Brain 2022 International Conference Award
- Recipient
- 28/5/2022
- PhD student won 2nd prize for best poster presentation
- Recipient
- 1/11/2021
- Teaching Excellence Award
- Recipient
- 2020
- Winner of Best Teacher in Faculty of Science Strathclyde Teaching Excellence Award
- Recipient
- 2018
Publications
- Increased expression of aromatase after focal cerebral ischemia : relevance to neuroprotection and functional recovery
- Gallagher Lindsay, Dominiczak Anna F, Garcia-Segura Luis M, Harada Nobuhiro, Hutchison J B, Mullin James M, Graham Delyth, O'Shaughnessy Peter, Carswell Hilary Victoria O
- Neuroprotection (2026)
- https://doi.org/10.1002/nep3.70033
- Impact of the chronic ischemic stroke microenvironment on silk fibroin hydrogel biodegradation and de novo tissue formation
- Phuagkhaopong Suttinee, Gorenkova Natalia, Aruvornlop Panicha, Carswell Hilary V O, Seib F Philipp
- ACS Omega (2026)
- Human iPSC-derived cerebral organoids as a translational model for stroke and preclinical therapeutic screening
- Omerigwe Simon Achi, Gomez-Roman Natividad, Newton Kathryn, Bowles Kathryn R, Carswell Hilary
- SIPBS Postgraduate Research Day 2025 (2025)
- Human iPSC-Derived Cerebral Organoids for In Vitro Stroke Modelling and Therapeutic Testing
- Omerigwe Simon Achi, Gomez-Roman Natividad, Newton Kathryn, Bowles Kathryn R, Carswell Hilary
- 7th UK Preclinical Stroke Symposium, pp. 45-46 (2025)
- The biological response of liquid silk towards inflammatory cells involved in stroke – relevance to its potential use as a regenerative stroke therapy
- Carswell Hilary
- 7th UK Preclinical Stroke Symposium (2025)
- A ‘stroke-on-a-chip’ microfluidic model using mouse primary neuronal cultures- a pathway for the future development of a human iPS stroke model
- Carswell Hilary
- Stem Cell Models of Neurodegenerative Diseases, March 2025 (SCMND 2025): (2025)
Professional Activities
- International Stroke Conference Abstracts and BJP 2025 abstracts. (Journal)
- Peer reviewer
- 8/9/2025
- 7th UK Preclinical Stroke Symposium
- Participant
- 8/9/2025
- Tenovus Scotland Strathclyde Regional Committee
- Invited speaker
- 5/6/2025
- Stem Cell Models of Neurodegenerative Diseases, March 2025 (SCMND 2025):
- Invited speaker
- 26/3/2025
- SIPBS 3Rs Day
- Invited speaker
- 4/12/2024
- Health and Care Futures: thematic areas workshop
- Participant
- 30/5/2024
Projects
- Development of a Human Cerebral Microvascular Model to Investigate the Biomechanical Influence of Clotting on Angiogenesis
- Eastham, Sarah (Researcher) Wu, Junxi (Co-investigator) McConnell, Gail (Co-investigator) Carswell, Hilary (Co-investigator)
- RS MacDonald facility access funding (£9,500) awarded by SULSA to investigate angiogenesis in the context of ischaemic stroke.
- 05-Jan-2025 - 04-Jan-2026
- Development of 'human stroke-on-a-chip' model to replace rodent stroke models
- Carswell, Hilary (Principal Investigator) Zagnoni, Michele (Co-investigator)
- 01-Jan-2025 - 31-Jan-2027
- Replacing animal models of stroke by establishing human induced pluripotent stem cell derived cerebral organoids as a human model of stroke.( NC3Rs Network Primer Awards)
- Carswell, Hilary (Principal Investigator)
- 01-Jan-2024 - 31-Jan-2025
- £16,570.64. Tenovus Scotland and The Neurosciences Foundation PhD Studentship. 6 months extension to PhD studentship.
- Carswell, Hilary (Principal Investigator)
- 01-Jan-2024 - 31-Jan-2024
- £1,853,262 PI Carswell. Saudi Arabia TDG International Consortium Grant. KSU, USA, Germany, ReNeuron Ltd, CGT Catapult, NHSGGC. Pending.
- Carswell, Hilary (Principal Investigator)
- SAR 8,787,400 (£1,853,262.66). Saudi Applied Research & Technology Initiative Technology Development Grant (TDG). Consortium grant with Saudi Arabia (KAU), Germany (University Jena), USA (University of Pittsburgh), ReNeuron Ltd, Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult, and NHSGGC ‘Pioneering regenerative hydrogel technologies as the next generation breakthrough for stroke treatment.’ Pending.
- 01-Jan-2024 - 31-Jan-2029
- £12,262,72k HaSS Bridging Disciplines: "Predicting healthy ageing and age-related disorders using the UK Biobank Database" Successfully funded
- McGeown, William (Principal Investigator) Mavroeidi, Alexandra (Principal Investigator) Parra Rodriguez, Mario (Co-investigator) Brown Nicholls, Louise (Co-investigator) Rasmussen, Susan (Co-investigator) Robertson, David (Co-investigator) Tse, Dwight (Co-investigator) Kirk, Alison (Co-investigator) Hafford-Letchfield, Trish (Co-investigator) Rattray, Nicholas (Co-investigator) Bushell, Trevor (Co-investigator) Gould, Gwyn (Co-investigator) GANGANNAGARIPALLI, Jaheedabegum (Co-investigator) Carswell, Hilary (Co-investigator) Tate, Rothwelle (Co-investigator) Kurdi, Amanj (Co-investigator) Lennon, Marilyn (Co-investigator) Moshfeghi, Yashar (Co-investigator) Roper, Marc (Co-investigator) McConnell, Gail (Co-investigator) Kerr, Andy (Co-investigator) Li, David (Co-investigator) Thomson, Avril (Co-investigator) Campbell, Gerard (Co-investigator) Vourganas, Ioannis (Co-investigator) Clark, Ruaridh (Co-investigator) Macdonald, Malcolm (Co-investigator)
- HaSS Bridging Disciplines.
Successfully funded for access to UK Biobank:
The overarching aim of the application is to investigate the predictors (e.g., lifestyle, neuroimaging metabolic and genetic) of healthy ageing (e.g., cognitive, physical and mental health in older age).
Our objectives are to identify the contribution of predictors (lifestyle, medication-related, neuroimaging, metabolic, and genetic) of the following outcomes, that occur at greater frequency in older age:
1) Cognitive impairment (e.g., due to normal ageing or neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, stroke)
2) Poor physical health (e.g., osteoporosis, diabetes, falls and fractures)
3) Poor mental health (e.g., anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation) - 08-Jan-2023 - 09-Jan-2025
Contact
Dr
Hilary
Carswell
Reader
Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences
Email: hilary.carswell@strath.ac.uk
Tel: 548 4956