TODAY Sydney medical scientist Brian Morris can celebrate the climax of his 40-year hunt to uncover a secret central to the cause of high blood pressure.

In a scientific advance of importance to the quarter of adults in the Western world who suffer potentially lethal high blood pressure, Professor Morris and his Sydney University team will publish research today revealing the hitherto mysterious role of the enzyme renin in triggering the condition.

The renin man ... Professor Brian Morris and his team have carried out research that shows the role an enzyme plays in triggering high blood pressure. Credit:Brendan Esposito

The research is the first of its kind to use human kidneys. It opens the way for more targeted drugs which could transform treatment of high blood pressure, a very strong risk factor for heart attack and stroke.

Professor Morris, one of Australia's leading genetic scientists, first began studying renin as a young student in the early 1970s. Now another young scientist, his PhD student, Brazilian Francine Marques, has performed the laboratory work, under his supervision, which helped clinch these new findings that may have international significance.