Research

Our primary goal is to perform significant, innovative research in the general area of cardiovascular-pulmonary biomedicine with a focus on the pathophysiological effects of hypoxia. A unique aspect of our research program is that it emphasizes a multidisciplinary approach to allow the integration of cardiovascular-pulmonary responses to hypoxia on molecular, cellular, organ, and whole animal or human subject levels. This permits the association of molecular and cellular mechanisms with  in vivo (clinical) relevance.

Training 

Our second goal is to prepare individuals holding a doctoral degree in either basic biological (PhD) or medical (MD, DVM) sciences for a successful academic career in research and teaching at a university or medical school. Our goal is that after three years of training, the program's postdoctoral fellows will have acquired the professional insights, scientific knowledge, communication and technical skills, networking, confidence, and perseverance required to establish innovative and productive academic research careers.

Core Resources

Investigators in the CVP lab have access to a variety of shared equipment and a wealth of experience in complex procedures. We have hypobaric and hyperbaric chambers for long-term animal housing, an electrocardiograph, facilities for measurement of RV and for handling isolated perfused lungs, a quantitative PCR machine, and many other quite useful tools.

The Chamber Room consists of two large and nine small hypobaric chambers, each with pressure individually adjustable from 5000 to 20,000 feet simulated altitude. In addition, there are six small hyperbaric chambers, which allow us to simulate sea-level altitude.

Typically, rodents are housed in these cages for anything between a few hours and four weeks, and use of the chambers is available to any CVP member with an animal protocol which allows it.