Professor Haralambos Gavras is a pioneer in the field of the physiopharmacology of cardiovascular diseases. He is credited with the development and introduction of inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) in the treatment of hypertension and heart failure, which is now standard therapy that has significantly decreased the morbidity and mortality of cardiovascular diseases. He has earned international recognition, as shown by the numerous honors and awards from various scientific organizations, such as the American Heart Association, the International Society of Hypertension, the World Heart Federation, etc., as well as his election as President of learned societies, such as the American Society of Hypertension and the Interamerican Society of Hypertension.
His research on the role of the RAS in the pathophysiology of hypertension and ischemic heart disease started with the demonstration that angiotensin II excess can cause myocardial necrosis and renal tubular necrosis in experimental animals. He went on to explore the hemodynamic and biochemical effects of experimental drugs that block the RAS and produced the proof of concept needed before large controlled clinical trials would establish this therapeutic approach.
He also investigated vasoactive neurohumoral factors such as the interaction of vasopressin with the sympathetic nervous system in salt-sensitivity and development of salt-induced hypertension and the sympathoregulatory properties of central α2A– and α2B-adrenergic receptors. He then confirmed these experimental findings in clinical trials on patients with congestive heart failure, by demonstrating the hemodynamic benefits of vasopressin blockade and central sympathetic inhibition in this setting.
He joined the faculty of the Boston University School of Medicine in 1975 and for over 30 years he secured constant uninterrupted research funding from the NIH. He assembled a team of investigators including molecular/cellular biologists, experimentalists and clinical investigators who, under his leadership, conducted research in basic science, physiologic experiments in animal models and clinical studies in which the research findings were successfully applied to treatment of patients.
More recently, using molecular biology techniques and genetically engineered animals he investigated the molecular pathways of hypertensive target organ damage, which led to the discovery and characterization of a novel, previously unknown gene, the cardiomyopathy associated 3 (Cmya3) gene, now renamed Xirp-2, that mediates ischemic myocardial tissue damage, the discovery of a novel cellular receptor of the angiotensin converting enzyme, as well as the cardioprotective potential of a selective B2 receptor agonist of bradykinin in acute coronary syndromes. He has authored or co-authored over 650 publications. In recognition of his excellence as a “bench to bedside” researcher and clinician he has earned numerous awards including the Arthur C. Corcoran 1993, the Lewis K.Dahl 1994 and the Novartis 2000 Awards from the A.H.A., the Talal Zein Award 1999 from the Mediterranean Association of Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery, the Franz Volhard Award 2004 from the World Heart Federation/I.S.H., as well as many awards from Hellenic biomedical societies in the U.S.A and Greece and honorary doctorates from the Universities of Athens, Thessaloniki and Patras, Greece. He has been elected Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (Glasgow), member of the Greek Academy of Science, Chairman of the Council of Hypertension of the American Heart Association, member of the European Research Council and of various National Advisory Boards, which have at various times established the clinical guidelines for the treatment of hypertension that regulate therapy of this condition worldwide.
