Roberto Elosúa

Roberto Elosua, M.D., Ph.D. is the coordinator of the Cardiovascular Epidemiology and Genetics research group at IMIM (https://www.imim.es/programesrecerca/epidemiologia/es_epicardiovascular.html). He is also the principal investigator of one group of the CIBERCV (https://www.cibercv.es/en/groups/research-group?id=23489). He is an investigator of the REGICOR project (REgistre GIroní del COR, www.regicor.cat) in which they are currently working in the research of the cardiovascular protective factors in the South of Europe (physical activity, diet, social support) to clarify the Mediterranean paradox, defined by a high prevalence of risk factors and a low incidence of cardiovascular disease. His research group involves a multidisciplinary team of epidemiologists, statisticians, biologists, biochemists, cardiologists, and vascular surgeons who work together to face these topics. His specific lines of research are focused on the study of the epidemiology and the genomic bases of cardiovascular disorders and their risk factors. In the area of the epidemiology of cardiovascular diseases, the group is working in determining the burden of these diseases at the population level, the study of physical activity as one of their determinants, and the evaluation of risk functions to estimate individual risk. In the area of genomic epidemiology, the group is aimed at deciphering the genetic and epigenetic architecture of cardiovascular diseases and their risk factors. Dr. Elosua leads with other international investigators association genome-wide studies, exome sequencing studies, and epigenome-wide association studies to identify genetic and epigenetic variants associated with this group of diseases. He is also interested in evaluating the predictive value of these new biomarkers to advance in the area of cardiovascular precision medicine. Moreover, he uses genetic biomarkers as instrumental variables to evaluate the causal association between a biomarker and cardiovascular traits to identify new potential therapeutic targets and tackle residual cardiovascular risk. The results of his research have been published in more than 500 scientific manuscripts in national and international journals with a high impact factor. He is participating in more than 50 competitive projects funded by public entities or scientific societies or thematic networks. Finally, he is also a Dean at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Vic – Central University of Catalonia, participates in postgraduate Masters, and takes part in monographic courses as a professor on the epidemiology and genetics of cardiovascular diseases.