Scientific Advisors & Collaborators
Members with careers in science and healthcare
MD, PhD, FESC
Thor Edvardsen
is Professor at the Department of Cardiology at Oslo University Hospital and a Professor at the Institute of Clinical Medicine at the University of Oslo. He was elected as the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging (EACVI) President from 2018-2020 and has been an elected board member in EACVI since 2010.
He has approximately 400 international scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals, and more than 30 book chapters and books. Thor is active in clinical and experimental research in myocardial function and has extensive knowledge of cardiac ultrasound, CMR, CT and hemodynamics.
PhD
Derek Grant
Derek Grant is ICTs’ Toxicology Consultant. He is an experienced toxicologist and toxicological pathologist with more than 40 publications in the field of cancer research, industrial chemical safety and pharmaceutical drug development. He was a toxicologist at Bayer AS, Algeta ASA, and was Director of Safety at GE Healthcare. Since 2019, he has worked as an independent toxicology consultant.
MD, PhD
David Newby
Professor David Newby is British Heart Foundation Duke of Edinburgh Chair of Cardiology at the University of Edinburgh, Director of the Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Facility, Director of Edinburgh Imaging facilities, and a Consultant Interventional Cardiologist at Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.
He has major interests in experimental medicine, advanced imaging and clinical trials of cardiovascular disease including coronary heart disease, aortic stenosis and heart failure. His contributions in the field of vascular injury and repair are internationally recognized. David is leader in the field of translational cardiovascular science and his work is continuing to influence our understanding of disease.
PhD
Esben A. Nilssen
Esben A. Nilsen is a patent & public grant advisor. Esben holds an MPhil in molecular biology from the University of Cambridge (UK) and a PhD in molecular genetics from the University of Oslo. He is a European Patent Attorney and has been a bioentrepreneur for 15 years. Esben is former CEO of IC Targets and is currently Managing Partner at the lab incubator ShareLab.
MD, PhD
Maria Vistnes
Maria Vistnes is a Senior Cardiologist at Oslo University Hospital and CEO of Klyv Therapeutics AS. She has conducted research on heart failure mechanisms for almost 20 years, with a particular focus on extracellular matrix remodeling, fibrosis, and biomarker development.
She is actively involved in innovation and commercialization and founded Klyv Therapeutics to develop anti-fibrotic treatments for heart failure. In addition, she is engaged in advancing remote patient monitoring solutions to improve the care of heart failure patients. Maria is a member of the Heart Failure Working Group in the Norwegian Society of Cardiology, where she has contributed to publishing guidance on heart failure management for general practitioners and provided expert input on Norway’s endorsement of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) heart failure guidelines.