Molly O’Reilly, PhD

ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS_____________________________________________________                   

2014 - 2018 – University of Sussex – Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Neuroscience

2011 - 2014 – University of Sussex – BSc. (Hons.) Neuroscience with Cognitive Science - First class

2003 - 2010 – King Edwards VI Grammar School – A-level: Biology (A*), Physics (B), Psychology (A), General Studies (A)

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE________________________________________________________

2022 – Present: Academic Medical Centre – Dutch Heart Foundation Research Fellow

Investigating the contribution of neuronal dysfunction to cardiac conditions using electrophysiology/microscopy techniques.

2018 – 2021: University of Birmingham – British Heart Foundation Research Fellow

Investigating the underlying ionic basis of cardiac arrhythmias caused by genetic abnormalities or environmental stressors.

2014 – 2018: University of Sussex – Doctoral Tutor

Over 200 hours of teaching alongside marking. Those taught ranged in experience from undergraduates to MSc students. 

PUBLICATIONS (TOTAL 19, H-INDEX 12, I10-INDEX 12, CITATIONS 373)___________________________________

O’Reilly M, Verkerk A, Remme CA. Redefining catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT) as a neurocardiac condition bioRxiv 2025.01.27.635037

Verkerk A, Remme CA, O’Reilly M. Electrophysiological comparison of left versus right stellate ganglia neurons. bioRxiv 2024.10.29.620825 (under review JMCC Plus).

Reyat J, Sommerfeld L, O’Reilly M, et al. (2024). PITX2 deficiency leads to atrial mitochondrial dysfunction. Cardiovascular Research, cvae169.

O’Reilly M, De Waal T, Casini S, Remme CA (2024). Ventricular hyperinnervation in a mouse model of catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, Cardiovascular Research, cvae088.098.

Nasilli G, Verkerk A, O’Reilly M, et al. (2024). Chronic mexiletine administration increases sodium current in non-diseased human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes. Biomedicines, 12(6), 1212.

Sommerfeld L, Holmes A, Yu T… O’Reilly M, et al. (2024). Reduced plakoglobin increases the risk of sodium current defects and atrial conduction abnormalities in response to androgenic anabolic steroid abuse. J Physiol. pp 1–28.

O’Reilly M, Derudas M, Kirkwood N, et al. (2023). Charge and lipophilicity are required for effective block of the hair-cell mechano-electrical transducer channel by FM1-43 and its derivatives. Front. Cell Dev. Biol., 11

O’Reilly M, Sommerfeld L, O’Shea C, et al. (2022). Familial atrial fibrillation mutation M1875T-SCN5A increases early sodium current and dampens the effect of flecainide. EP Europace, euac218.

Al-Maswary A, O’Reilly M, Holmes A, et al. (2022) Neurogenic modulation of dental pulp stem cells through activating MAPK signalling pathway. PLoS One;17(11):e0277134.

O’Shea C, Winter J, Kabir S, O’Reilly M, et al. (2022). High-resolution optical mapping of cardiac electrophysiology in pre-clinical models. Sci Data 9, 135.

O’Brien S, Holmes A, Johnson D, O’Shea C, O’Reilly M, et al. (2022). Increased Atrial Selectivity of Flecainide Conferred by Reduced Atrial Sodium Currents. J Mol Cell Cardiol; 166:23-35.

Kunzel S, Hoffman M, Weber S… O’Reilly M, et al. (2021). Diminished PLK2 Induces Cardiac Fibrosis and Promotes Atrial Fibrillation. Circ Res; 129(8):804-820.

Holmes A, Saxena P, Kabir S… O’Reilly M, et al. (2021). The atrial resting membrane potential confers sodium current sensitivity to propafenone, flecainide and dronedarone. Heart Rhythm; 18(7):1212-1220.

Obergassel J, O’Reilly M, Sommerfeld L, et al. (2021). Effects of genetic background, sex and age on murine atrial electrophysiology. Europace; 19: euaa369.

O’Reilly M, Young L, Kirkwood N, et al. (2019). Gentamicin Affects Bioenergetics of Isolated Mitochondria and Collapses the Mitochondrial Membrane Potential in Cochlear Sensory Hair Cells. Front. Cell. Neurosci. 13:416.

O'Reilly M, Kirkwood N, Kenyon E, et al. (2019). Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of a new series of carvedilol derivatives that protect sensory hair cells from aminoglycoside-induced damage by blocking the mechano-electrical transducer channel. J. Med. Chem. 62(11):5312-5329.

Jeong M, O'Reilly M, Kirkwood N, et al. (2018). Generating inner ear organoids containing putative cochlear hair cells from human pluripotent stem cells. Cell Death & Disease. 922(9). 2041-4889.

Kenyon E, Kirkwood N, Kitcher S, O'Reilly M, et al. (2017). Identification of ion-channel modulators that protect against aminoglycoside-induced hair cell death. JCI Insight. 2:96773.

Kirkwood N, O’Reilly M, Derudas M, et al. (2017). d-Tubocurarine and berbamine: alkaloids that are permeant blockers of the hair cell’s mechano-electrical transducer channel and protect from aminoglycoside toxicity. Front. Cell. Neurosci. 11:262.

O’Reilly M, Coney A, O’Shea C, et al. Succinate inhibits cardiac Na_v1.5 leading to atrial depolarisation delay, conduction slowing and severe ECG abnormalities. (in preparation)

Casini S, O’Reilly M, Verkerk A, et al. Altered firing activity of intracardiac neurons isolated from mice carrying the Scn5a-1798insD mutation. (in preparation)

PRIZES AND AWARDS_________________________________________________________________________

Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences Best Oral Presentation Award - 2024

European Society of Cardiology Working Group on Cardiac Cellular Electrophysiology Best Abstract Award – 2024

Vector Labs Science Photography Competition finalist (2018) and winner (2019)

Sussex University Research Image Competition Exhibition winner – 2018

Don Henderson Best Abstract Travel Award – 2018  

University of Sussex PhD Prize runner-up – 2018

PERSONAL FUNDING_________________________________________________________________________

Amsterdam UMC Postdoc Career Bridging Grant - €2.850 – March 2024

ZonMw Off-Road Grant - €100.000 – July 2022

Dutch Heart Foundation Dekker Grant - €280.000 – July 2022

Amsterdam UMC Postdoc Career Bridging Grant - €105.000 – March 2022

• Targeting neuronal dysfunction to prevent sudden cardiac death in inherited arrhythmia syndromes

Erasmus+ staff mobility award - €1.300 – November 2021

• To enhance the pre-established collaboration between the Universities of Birmingham and Amsterdam

British Heart Foundation (BHF) Accelerator Award - £8,500 – May 2021

• “SCN5A mutation-induced arrhythmias: cardiac or neuronal in origin?”

European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Basic Research Fellowship - €25,000 – February 2021

• “The effects of ‘cardiac’ mutations on neuronal electrophysiology”

Medical Intercalation Student Project proposals - £4,200 – September 2020

• “Investigating the effects of AMP-activated protein kinase activators on cardiac electrophysiology”

Research Development Fund Award - £4,800 – February 2020

• “Does cardiac nerve stimulation cause atrial arrhythmia following ischaemia/reperfusion?”

During my PhD I presented at 8 conferences and independently secured external funding towards the cost of attendance, from at least one source on every occasion. The funding bodies that provided Travel Awards were:

• Association for Research in Otolaryngology - £500 (2016), £750 (2018)
• University of Sussex Postgraduate Fund - £650 (2017)
• Physiological Society – £500 (2016), £500 (2016), £500 (2017)
• Action on Hearing Loss - £200 (2016)
• National Institute of Health - £1000 (2016)

INVITED ORAL PRESENTATIONS_________________________________________________________________

‘Redefining CPVT: a neurocardiac condition’

• Heart Rhythm, 2025
• International Society of Heart Research (ISHR) 2025
• Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences Symposium, 12/12/2024

‘Forward and reverse neuro-cardiac remodeling in a mouse model of catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia’

• European Society of Cardiology Working Group on Cardiac Cellular Electrophysiology, 02/07/2024

‘Ventricular hyperinnervation in a mouse model of catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia’

• DCVA-NLHI Translational Cardiovascular Research Meeting, 21/06/2024

‘Unravelling the role of autonomic nervous system dysfunction in inherited arrhythmia syndromes’

• Frontiers in CardioVascular Biomedicine (FCVB), 14/04/2024

‘Unravelling the role of autonomic nervous system dysfunction in inherited arrhythmia syndromes’

• Cross-Talk of Cells in the Heart: Novel Mechanisms of Disease and Arrhythmias, 11/09/2023

‘Succinate and exposure to hypoxia-reoxygenation cause similar pro-arrhythmic modifications in left atrial electrophysiology’

• ESC Working Group on Cardiac Cellular Electrophysiology (EWGCCE), 05/05/2022

‘The SCN5A point mutation M1875T causes a gain-of-function effect of the cardiac Na_v1.5 channel in atrial cardiomyocytes’

– European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) congress, 24/04/2021

‘The Effects of Hypoxia and Reoxygenation on Cardiac Electrophysiology’

– Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences Away Day, 03/05/2019

‘XE 991, a K_V7 channel blocker, acts as an otoprotectant in vitro’

– British Neuroscience Association (BNA) Festival of Neuroscience, 10/04/2017

TEACHING AND SUPERVISING__________________________________________________________________

Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, 2016.

• During my first post-doc I supervised a third-year medical intercalation student whom I attained wet lab funding for (First class); I taught students in Cardiovascular Systems; supervised PhD students within the laboratory; and taught visiting international postdoctoral researchers in cardiovascular sciences lab techniques.
• Employed as a Doctoral Tutor throughout my PhD, I completed over 200 hours of teaching alongside marking. Students ranged in experience from first year undergraduates to MSc students.

EXTRACURRICULAR__________________________________________________________________________

• Post-doctoral and Early Research Career Development and Training (PERCAT) – University of Birmingham Cardiovascular Sciences representative (2018-2021)
• Public outreach, organising/co-organising:
  • A lab demonstration with the Hartstichting, showcasing research to cardiomyopathy patients (June, 2023)
  • A lab demonstration with Giving Back NL, showcasing research to talented high school students (April, 2023)
  • The Green Heart project, supervising the Britsh Heart Foundation stall and showcasing research outputs whilst engaging and educating the public as to the work that the charity supports (May, 2019)
• Private science tutor at Tutor Hunt

PROFESSIONAL SOCIETY MEMBERSHIPS__________________________________________________________

Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy; Affiliate member of the Physiological Society; European Society of Cardiology; European Working Group of Cellular Cardiac Electrophysiology.

ACADEMIC CITIZENSHIP_______________________________________________________________________

Reviewer for: Heart Rhythm; Europace; iScience; Heliyon; The Journal of Pharmacological and Experimental Therapeutics; The Journal of Membrane Biology; The International Journal of Cardiovascular Imaging.