May 2018 graduate: Seungyeon Yeon

Congratulations to Seungyeon Yeon, who graduated with a Master of Research in May under the supervision of Dr Sai Seto and Professor Dennis Chang. Using ex vivo models, Seungyeon investigated the effects of Sailuotong (SLT) on cerebral vascular reactivity.

Developed by NICM and our Chinese research partners over 10 years, SLT is a standardised herbal medicine formula which consists of a ginseng, gingko and saffron.  Through her research Seungyeon showed that SLT causes vessel dilatation by inhibiting calcium (an important ion responsible for vascular reactivity) influx in blood vessels. Her work revealed an unreported pharmacological property and mechanism of action of SLT, which helped to explain a previous clinical observation of SLT regarding an increase in cerebral blood flow.

Seungyeon will now explore for her PhD project the effects and underlying mechanisms of herbal products against vascular calcification, a common complication in aging, atherosclerosis, metabolic syndrome and chronic kidney disease.