Fellow

Philip Baker is Professor of Maternal and Fetal Health at the University of Manchester and is distinguished for his research in pre-eclampsia and fetal growth restriction. In pre-eclampsia, he demonstrated that placentally-derived factors cause endothelial dysfunction that leads to dramatic multi-organ changes. He identified circulating factor(s) prior to clinical disease - emphasising the potential for screening tests and novel treatments and demonstrated that metabolomic and proteomics technologies could identify those at risk. He has also made important contributions to our understanding of foetal growth restriction. He was first to demonstrate apoptosis within the placenta, and highlight the increased apoptosis in compromised pregnancies. Throughout this work, he has led the application of magnetic resonance imaging in pregnancy - showing that MRI could accurately estimate intrauterine growth, placental function, and provide insight into fetal brain function.