Research Techniques

Equipment available for research use in the laboratory:

Cardiovascular Equipment

  • Nerve Traffic Analyzer model 662c-4 (University of Iowa Bioengineering)
  • Grass S-48 Nerve Stimulator (Astro Med, Inc.)
  • Ultrasound (GE-S8 and GE- Logiq P5 )
  • Transcranial Doppler (LDW)
  • Carbon Dioxide Monitor (Capnocheck Plus)
  • Finapres Finometer and NOVA (beat-to-beat blood pressure monitor)
  • ECG and automated BP monitor (GE-Dash 200)
  • Ambulatory BP monitors (SunTech Oscar 2 w/Sphygmocor)
  • E20 Rapid Cuff Inflator & AG101 Air Source (Hokanson)
  • Pneumootrace II System (assessment of respiration)
  • SphygmoCor XCEL (AtCor Medical)

Body Composition & Energy Expenditure Equipment

  • Tanita Body Composition Analyzer (TBF-300A)
  • Parvomedics TrueOne 2400 metabolic cart
  • CASE 8000 Stress Test System
  • T2000 Treadmill (GE)
  • Lode cycle ergometer
  • ActiGraph GT3x physical activity monitors
  • Vantage Vue Climate Monitor (Davis)
  • DXA/BodPod

 

Wet lab Equipment

  • Advanced 3D3 Osmometer (ADInstruments)
  • EasyElectrolyte Analyzer (Medica)
  • Allegra X-22R Centrifuge (Beckman Coulter)
  • Sorvall Legend Micro 17 Centrifuge (Thermo Scientific)
  • Hemoglobin analyzer (HemoCue 201+)
  • Lactate analyzer (Accutrend)
  • pH analyzer (Accumet Basic)
  • -80 freezers, standard refrigerators/freezers, and Scotsman icemaker
  • AN74i Anprolene gas sterilizer
  • Symmetry scale (Cole-Parmer)

Computer hardware & software

  • LabChart 8.0 Pro
  • ADInstruments PowerLab (16/35)
  • LabView 2018
  • Windaq
  • Endnote X7
  • HemoLab Baroreflex Assessment
  • Kubios HRV
  • Accuwin Pro 4 Ambulatory BP Monitor Report System
  • Nutrient Data Systems for Research software for dietary intake analysis
  • SPSS 24.0 statistical software
  • GraphPad Prism 7
  • ActiLife (for Actigraph accelerometers)

We assess resting and reflex blood pressure regulation. Specifically, we study how dietary salt and dehydration affect responses during exercise pressor reflex activation, the cold pressor test, the breath hold, and the valsalva maneuver. We also use transcranial doppler to assess brain blood vessel function during hypercapnia and hypocapnia.

A sample recording of the difference between baseline and perturbation conditions is shown here, with the increase in size and frequency of peaks indicating an increase in sympathetic activity.

The team in the Cardiovascular Lab performs blood draws throughout in order to assess parameters such as lactate, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and to create a robust hormone profile to understand the influences of experimental conditions.

The team in the Cardiovascular Lab performs blood draws throughout in order to assess parameters such as lactate, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and to create a robust hormone profile to understand the influences of experimental conditions.

Microneurography is a technique that allows us to directly record muscle sympathetic nerve activity, which provides mechanistic insight into how blood pressure is controlled at rest and during a perturbation. this technique allows us to study the effect of different dietary and experimental perturbations on sympathetic outflow. Pictured to the left, you can see a microelectrode (small white flag attached) placed in the peroneal nerve.