Dr Dick Thijssen
Post-Doctoral Research Fellow
Dick Thijssen is a Post-doctoral Research Fellow at the Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University. He completed his BSc degree in Physiotherapy and his MSc degree in Human Movement Sciences. In 2007, he completed his doctoral degree in Vascular Physiology at the Radboud University Nijmegen, the Netherlands. Currently, he also works as a Research Fellow at the Department of Physiology from the Radboud University Nijmegen.
His research interest in humans is strongly focused on the effect of physical activity and inactivity on the vasculature. This includes assessment of vascular adaptations in subjects that undergo a model of inactivity (spinal cord injury, bed rest, casting and unilateral lower limb suspension), but also the effects of exercise training. By detailed assessment of acute and chronic changes in vascular function and structure, his research is aimed to elucidate the mechanisms that underlie the marked cardiovascular effect of physical activity in humans. His research is aimed at healthy subjects across the age-span, but also on cardiovascular risk factors (e.g. hypertension, diabetes) and disease (e.g. coronary artery disease, heart failure) . Ultimately, this will help to understand the effects of physical (in)activity and optimise the effects of exercise training in health and disease.
Scholarships and Prizes
- 2010: UK Sports Ideas4Innovation-award to study the impact of ischaemic preconditioning on physical performance in elite athletes
- 2010: Dr. E. Dekker-stipend to study the impact of moderate- and high-intensity exercise training on the role of endothelin-1 and nitric oxide in heart failure
- 2009: AERA-award to study the impact of exercise training on the role of endothelin-1 in type 2 diabetes
- 2009: Oded Bar-Or Award for International Scholars from the American College of Sports Medicine
- 2008: Young Physiologists Prize for oral presentation at the European College of Sports Science (Estoril, Portugal)
- 2007: Rubicon-grant to perform 2 years of research at the John Moores University Liverpool, United Kingdom
- 2004: Young Physiologists Prize for the best oral presentation at the annual Young Physiologists Day
- 2003: Annual faculty prize (Biomedical Health Sciences, Radboud University Nijmegen) for the best MSc-thesis.
Research areas
- Cardiovascular physiology
- Impact of physical (in)activity on vascular function and structure
- Regulation of shear rate pattern
Contact Details Telephone:
+44 (0)151 904 6246
Fax:
+44 (0)151 904 6284
