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.
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.
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 one large and nine small hypobaric chambers, each with pressure individually adjustable from 5000 to 20,000 feet simulated altitude. In addition, there is a large hyperbaric chamber, which allows 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.
The Cardiovacular Research Laboratory is a part of the Univeristy of Colorado at Denver at the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, Colorado. The greater Denver
metropolitan area is an excellent place to live, with a myriad of cultural events and close access to a multitude
of recreational opportunites (for more information on Denver, go to www.denver.org)
