Dr Ian Marshall graduated in psychology, followed by a PhD in pharmacology from the University of London. He has taught pharmacology at St Mary's Hospital Medical School, at the University of Michigan and latterly as Senior Lecturer at The Middlesex Hospital Medical School where in 1985 he was appointed site head of department. He is a past editor of the British Journal of Pharmacology and is Departmental Tutor to Medical students.
Smooth muscle contains many different receptors which mediate contraction or relaxation.
These changes in the tone of the smooth muscle are mediated through a variety of effector mechanisms many of which are coupled to receptors via G-proteins. The transduction mechanism may involve cyclic nucleotides, inositol phosphates and diacylglycerol or nitric oxide. Many of the G-protein coupled receptors have been cloned although it is not always clear how receptor subtypes identified by molecular biology relate to subtypes defined on pharmacological grounds. These problems are being examined for a number of receptors. Some of this work is closely linked to the development of new therapeutic agents and is carried out in association with workers in several pharmaceutical companies.