Integrative Cardiovascular Physiology Laboratory

Research Interests:

The main research focus of Dr. Gail Thomas's lab is to understand the role of the sympathetic nervous system in the control of cardiovascular function during physiologically stressful situations such as exercise, as well as during pathophysiological conditions such as heart failure and muscular dystrophy. Our ongoing research projects include: (1) elucidating the local mechanisms that modulate sympathetic vasoconstriction in exercising skeletal muscle with a recent focus on nitric oxide and reactive oxygen species; (2) determining the role of estrogen and estrogen receptors in the sympathetic control of cardiovascular function during exercise; and (3) investigating a role for ischemia in the pathogenesis of skeletal muscle degeneration and cardiac dysfunction that occur in muscular dystrophy. We perform studies using a variety of animal models including rats and genetically-engineered mice as well as in human subjects, with the goal of translating the findings from our basic science and experimental animal research into the clinical understanding of integrative cardiovascular control in health and disease. 

• Sympathetic neural control of the cardiovascular system during exercise
• Local modulation of adrenergic vasoconstriction in skeletal muscle
• Estrogen and cardiovascular function 
• Cardiovascular pathophysiology in muscular dystrophy
  

Personnel:

Jianfeng Ye, Ph.D.

Recent Publications:

Thomas GD, Shaul PW, Yuhanna IS, Froehner SC, Adams ME. Vasomodulation by skeletal muscle-derived nitric oxide requires a-syntrophin-mediated sarcolemmal localization of neuronal nitric oxide synthase. Circ. Res. 92:554-560, 2003.

Fadel PJ, Wang Z, Tuncel M, Watanabe H, Abbas A, Arbique D, Vongpatanasin W, Haley RW, Victor RG, Thomas GD. Reflex sympathetic activation during static exercise is severely impaired in patients with myophosphorylase deficiency. J. Physiol. 548:983-993, 2003.

Fadel PJ, Zhao W, Thomas GD. Impaired vasomodulation is associated with reduced neuronal nitric oxide synthase in skeletal muscle of ovariectomized rats. J. Physiol. 549:243-253, 2003.

Thomas GD and Segal SS. Neural control of muscle blood flow during exercise. J. Appl. Physiol. 97:731-738, 2004.

Fadel PJ, Wang Z, Watanabe H, Arbique D, Vongpatanasin W, and Thomas GD. Augmented sympathetic vasoconstriction in exercising forearms of postmenopausal women is reversed by oestrogen therapy. J. Physiol. 561:893-901, 2004.

Lambert DG and Thomas GD. Alpha-adrenoceptor constrictor responses and their modulation in slow-twitch and fast-twitch mouse skeletal muscle J. Physiol. 563:821-829, 2005.