Programme Director

The MMedSci Programme Director is Dr Richard Weller.

Richard trained in medicine at St Thomas’ Hospital in London, and then in general (internal) medicine in the north of England and in Australia. He trained in dermatology at the St John’s Institute of Dermatology in London, then in Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

In the three years leading up to his current appointment, he was a visiting research fellow at the Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, Germany, and the University of Pittsburgh, USA.

Richard was appointed to the post of Senior Lecturer in Dermatology at the University of Edinburgh in January of 2002. He also holds an honorary contract as a Consultant Dermatologist in NHS Lothian.

Richard's research interests are focused on the interaction between sunlight and general health, and use a combination of human studies, with laboratory based immunology and cell physiology.  He described the synthesis and then release of Nitric Oxide from storage forms in the skin following UV irradiation and has gone on to demonstrate how this leads to a UV mediated fall in blood pressure.  This work is leading to a reconsideration of the risk-benefit ratio for sunlight exposure.  A TED talk he gave outlines some of the experimental work he has carried out.  http://www.ted.com/speakers/richard_weller