Dr Riaz Akhtar MEng, PhD, SFHEA, FIMMM

Arteries become stiffer with the natural ageing process and this stiffening which is associated with cardiovascular disease is exacerbated with conditions such as diabetes. For many years, I have had an interest in understanding how the structure and mechanical properties of large arteries is compromised at the microscopic and sub-microscopic level. Arteries are multi-layered anatomical structures with a complicated organisation of cells of cellular and extracellular matrix components within these layers. Hence, understanding how they change with ageing and disease processes is not trivial. I first focussed on this research area as a British Heart Foundation Advanced Training research fellow and have continued to build on this strand of research over the years. We have developed many novel approaches to characterise vascular tissue at these length scales. Such research is important for the development of mechanistic understanding of arterial disease and the development of new clinical treatments. Our current research in this area is in close collaboration with University of Southern Denmark in view to better relate nano-architecture and nanomechanical properties of arterial tissue with clinical markers.Review Paper: Characterizing the elastic properties of tissuesReview Paper: In vitro characterisation of arterial stiffening: From the macro- to the nano-scale

A main thrust of our research currently involves understanding rare aortic diseases such as Acute Type A aortic dissection (AAD). AAD involves a splitting in the aortic wall which is life-threatening and often occurs in young patients without any previous relevant medical history. We are using a range of novel techniques to try and better understand the risk of aortic dissection developing. We conduct this research with vascular surgeons at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital and also collaborators in a range of other disciplines such as biochemistry and mathematical modelling. Our funding for this research comes from a number of sources including British Heart Foundation.

The eye is a fascinating organ of the human body. The cornea and sclera (white of the eye) exhibit interesting biomechanical behaviour, and common eye disorders such as myopia are associated with substantial biomechanical changes in the eye. Our research in to the nano- and micro-mechanical changes in ocular tissues with ageing and disease fits in to the wider ocular biomechanics research within the School of Engineering (led by Prof. Elsheikh). We currently have active projects focussing on better understanding degenerative changes in the sclera and the cornea. One of my research interests in ocular biomechanics is keratoconus, a progressive, degenerative disease that is now considered to be a major clinical problem worldwide, affecting up to 600 people per 100,000.

Below is a link to an article I wrote in 'The Conversation' about ocular biomechanics: Understanding the mechanics of the eye could help treat degenerative disease - The Conversation

Skin is a highly complex organ of the human body that is vital for heat and water loss as well as preventing harmful material from entering the body. Although the mechanics of skin are widely studied, an emerging area is how skin responds at the micro-scale. Recent research has shown that skin exhibits a different mechanical response at different length scales. Our research is not only interested in understanding how skin responds when probed at the micro-scale but also how this response can be exploited for drug delivery and sensing applications using microneedles. Microneedles are arrays of sub-millimetre projections which can be used to painless delivery drugs and vaccines to the skin. Our experience in skin micromechanics has contributed to projects with industry to develop microneedle devices for a range of different applications.