RESEARCH INTERESTS - RICH
Our research interests involve clinical and laboratory studies of the endothelium and vascular smooth muscle. The endothelium plays an important role in modulating vascular resistance primarily through the production of endogenous vasodilators that regulate smooth muscle tone. These important vasodilators include nitric oxide and prostacyclin. I am primarily interested in evaluating methods to protect the vascular endothelium during ischemic/ reperfusion injury and inflammation that may occur in a variety of clinical situations.
In the laboratory I am interested in the role of anesthetics and the protection they provide during ischemic/ reperfusion injury and inflammation. Brief periods of volatile anesthetic exposure protect the endothelium from injury. In-vitro, cell cultures of rat smooth muscle cells and human endothelial cells exposed to isoflurane and halothane are protected from cell death secondary to cytokine-induced injury. In-vivo, exposure volatile anesthetics for brief periods protect the rat vascular endothelium from inflammatory injury as measured by endothelium-dependent vasodilation. I am interested in evaluating these important effects of volatile anesthetics using methods that include cell culture, intact rat experiments, and cremaster muscle preparations.
Clinically, I am interested in the treatment of pulmonary hypertension and right heart failure. Many therapies for the treatment of pulmonary hypertension involve the use of endogenous factors in the endothelium (nitric oxide and prostacyclin) which can be administered exogenously. In particular, we have extensive experience in the use of inhaled nitric oxide as a selective vasodilator of the pulmonary circulation.
Our research is funded by money from industry and grants from the American Heart Association.
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