What is the major problem being addressed in this research program?

Our research is aimed at understanding why blood pressure is lower after exercise.  In particular, we are trying to identify what hormonal, neural, or metabolic factors are responsible for increasing blood flow in the legs during recovery from a single bout of exercise.

What specific questions are being asked and how will they be answered?

We have begun to identify what some of these factors are.  For instance, we know that the nerves that control blood flow in the leg are less active following exercise.  We believe other factors are also involved in this response and are working to identify these other factors.  We do this by studying healthy volunteers before, during, and after an hour of cycling on a stationary bicycle.

What is the long-term biomedical significance of this work, particularly as it pertains to the cardiovascular area? What major therapeutic advances might it lead to?

It is our goal to understand more completely the effects of exercise on blood pressure.  This may lead to better ways to manage hypertension through physical activity.

What are some of the methods and techniques being used to address these questions?

Our volunteer research subjects undergo a variety of tests during these studies.  We measure aerobic capacity (VO2max testing) in our volunteers so that we can apply a personal exercise workload to each individual.  Typical measurements in this project might include the following: heart rate (electrocardiography), blood pressure (manual auscultation or beat-to-beat finger plethysmography), cardiac output (inert gas wash-in method employing acetylene), regional blood flow  (Doppler ultrasonography), direct neural recordings (microneurography), and skeletal muscle interstitial fluid sampling by intramuscular microdialysis. 

                                                   This project is supported by a grant from: