Valerie O’Donnell
(Cardiff University), Biochemisty, PhD, Prof, Director of Division and Head of Cardiff Lipidomic Group
Dr Valerie O’Donnell (Prof of Biochemistry) researches bioactive lipids in vascular biology and inflammation, using mass spectrometry to identify and characterise new mediators generated by circulating blood cells. Since 2007, she has identified large numbers of enzymatically-oxidized lipids that regulate innate immunity including promoting clotting, immune signaling and antibacterial activities. Her group is funded by Medical Research Council and European Research Council. Since 2017, she has been co-lead of LIPID MAPS, a global database and resource, funded by a Biomedical Resource Grant from Wellcome Trust with >66K users worldwide, with is a joint collaboration with UCSD and Babraham, Cambridge. Her PhD at Bristol University characterised the mechanisms of inhibition of neutrophil superoxide generation and this was followed by postdoctoral fellowships at University of Berne, Switzerland (Marie Curie Biotech Fellow), and University of Alabama at Birmingham (Parker B Francis Fellow) where she identified key regulatory nodes for nitric oxide and lipid signaling via lipoxygenases and cyclooxygenases. She came to Cardiff on a Wellcome Trust Fellowship and is currently Director of Division of Infection and Immunity. She is named inventor of a lipid that is in Phase IIB clinical trials for inflammation, with over $80M Series B/C investment, and licenced to a spin-out company, Complexa.


Recent key research papers
Allen-Redpath, K, Aldrovandi, M, …….., PV, Collins, PW and O’Donnell, VB. (2019) Phospholipid membranes drive abdominal aortic aneurysm development through stimulating coagulation factor activity. Proc Natl Acad Sci, USA
O’Donnell, VB, Aldrovandi, M, Krönke, G, Murphy, RC (2019) Enzymatically-oxidized phospholipids (eoxPL) assume center-stage as essential regulators of innate immunity and cell death. Science Signalling 12, eaau2293 (2019)
latter, DA, Percy, CL, …… Collins, PW and O’Donnell, VB (2018) Enzymatically-oxidized phospholipids restore blood clot formation in factor VIII deficiency through supporting factor activities on membrane surfaces J Clin Invest Insight 3(6):e98459
Lauder, SN, Allen-Redpath, K, …….Uderhardt, S, Ackermann, J, Jenkins, PV, Brancale, A, Kroenke, G, Collins, PW and O’Donnell, VB (2017) Networks of enzymatically oxidized membrane lipids support calcium-dependent coagulation factor binding to maintain hemostasis. Science Signaling 10, Issue 507, eaan2787, DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.aan2787
Uderhardt, S, Ackermann, J, …….., Schett, G, O’Donnell, VB, Krönke, G. (2017) Enzymatic lipid oxidation by eosinophils propagates coagulation, hemostasis and thrombotic disease J Exp Med 214(7):2121-2138. doi: 10.1084/jem.20161070