Scholarship and Biography
We study the molecular and cellular interactions that direct the development and function of the peripheral sympathetic neurons that innervate peripheral organs and regulate cardiac function and blood pressure. These autonomic neurons, residing in peripheral sympathetic ganglia, form the output path from the brain to peripheral organs and contribute to the maintenance of bodily functions within a homeostatic range. Understanding the control mechanisms of this peripheral circuit is of enormous importance if we are to understand how normal homeostasis breaks down in diseases characterized by pathologically elevated sympathetic drive such as Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), diabetes, and hypertension.
We have identified neurotrophic factors and members of the bone morphogenetic protein family as regulators of a series of sequential and overlapping developmental events during sympathetic neuron development. These target-derived factors promote neurite growth, axonal arborization, and synapse formation, leading to functional maturation of sympathetic drive to heart cells. In addition, local interactions with satellite glial cells within the sympathetic ganglia modulate sympathetic synaptic transmission and ganglionic output. We are currently investigating multiple forms of synaptic plasticity within these ganglia and testing a role for glial signaling in the homeostatic regulation of sympathetic output.