2 Jun 2020
“I am thrilled to receive this award. It is made particularly special by the fact I was nominated by my peers. It is important to emphasise, though, that research is a team effort” – Harriet Syme, RVC.
Vet Times
Job Title
The RVC’s Harriet Syme has been named winner of the Petplan Charitable Trust scientific research award 2020.
The award is made for outstanding contributions to veterinary research and reflects Prof Syme’s status as one of the leading veterinary clinician scientists in the UK, recognised internationally for her knowledge and expertise in nephrology and endocrinology.
The scientific award is an annual celebration and recognition of the work carried out by organisations and individuals dedicated to the health and welfare of dogs, cats, horses and rabbits. Each year it is presented to a scientist selected from nominations submitted by the UK’s eight veterinary schools and the AHT.
Prof Syme leads research into the pathophysiology and epidemiology of feline hyperthyroidism and the endocrinological diseases that lead to hypertension in cats.
She has also made major contributions to the RVC’s research into feline chronic kidney disease and the endocrinology of bone mineral disturbances associated with this common feline medical condition.
Jonathan Elliott – vice-principal for research and innovation and professor of veterinary clinical pharmacology at the RVC – said: “Prof Syme’s research has made such a difference to the diagnosis, treatment, and long-term monitoring of common medical problems in both dogs and cats.
“On top of this, she is also a great inspiration to her colleagues and students – particularly those who have benefitted from her mentoring and supervision over the years; many of whom are now winning research funding and leading their own research projects from clinically active posts in veterinary schools.”
Harriet Syme, professor of small animal internal medicine and director of the RVC’s internal medicine residency (senior clinical training scholarship) programme, said: “I am thrilled to receive this award. It is made particularly special by the fact I was nominated by my peers.
“It is important to emphasise, though, that research is a team effort, and I am just one of many people, vets and nurses alike, working together at the RVC to try to further our understanding of the diseases that old cats get, so that we can improve their quality of life.”
