Derick van Vuuren grew up in Potchefstroom in the North West province. After matriculating from Volkskool High, he stayed in Potchefstroom and completed a B.Sc. degree at Potchefstroom University (now the North-West University, Potchefstroom campus) with majors in Physiology and Biochemistry. Physiology grabbed his interest, so in 2005 he continued at the PUK with a B.Sc. Honours in Physiology. The focus of his honours project was to utilise a population-based approach to investigate the link between inflammation and obesity-related cardiovascular dysfunction in African compared to Caucasian women.

In search of new horizons, he left Potchefstroom after completion of his honours degree and enrolled for an M.Sc. degree at the Division of Medical Physiology at Stellenbosch University, Tygerberg campus. For the next two years he explored the phenomenon of ischaemic postconditioning in the heart. Postconditioning is a mechanical intervention at the onset of reperfusion with the potential benefit of reducing the damage incurred on a heart following the stress of ischaemia and reperfusion (such as would occur with a patient suffering from a heart attack and going for reperfusion therapy).

He is currently busy with his Ph.D. degree at the Division of Medical Physiology, under the supervision of prof.’s Amanda Lochner, Anna-Mart Engelbrecht and Barbara Huisamen. Staying in the field of cardiac physiology and cardioprotection, the aim of his study is to determine the role of protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A), which is a major protein phosphatase (an enzyme catalyzing dephosphorylation reactions) in the setting of ischaemia/reperfusion. It is known that various signalling cascades are associated with stress in the heart. These signalling pathways utilise sequential phosphorylation events to get their message across. The question is what  role does the active dephosphorylation of these signalling pathways play? In an attempt to start answering this question Derick is utilising isolated heart perfusions combined with protein analysis techniques (Western blotting) to determine the role and importance of PP2A in cardiac ischaemia/reperfusion injury. He is also planning to expand his research to include a cellular model, in order to apply  different techniques to help answer this question.

Derick was appointed as junior lecture in the Division of Medical Physiology in 2010.

In between experiments and lectures he tries to take care of his own heart by playing squash and walking around on Tygerberg Hill.