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Pete Watson, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Medicine

My work has focused on cardiac and vascular adaptation to both physiological and pathological states. Work in the heart has focused on the crucial distinctions that define physiological growth of the left ventricle, like that seen with exercise, from pathological hypertrophy and subsequent failure in response to hypertension and diabetes. Specifically, we have examined the function of the transcription factor CREB in the heart and vasculature. CREB is important for establishing and maintaining physiological function in both the heart and vasculature, acting to increase resistance to programmed cell death (apoptosis) and balancing energy production to increased energy demands through increases in mitochondrial respiratory capacity.

 

Selected Publications

  • Watson PA, Reusch JE, McCune SA, Leinwand LA, Luckey SW, Konhilas JP, Brown DA, Chicco AJ, Sparagna GC, Long CS, Moore RL. Restoration of CREB Function is Linked to Completion and Stabilization of Adaptive Cardiac Hypertrophy in Response to Exercise. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2007 PUBMED

  • Konhillas, J.P., Watson, P.A., Maass, A., Boucek, D.M., Horn, T., Stauffer, B.L., Luckey, S.W., Rosenberg, P., Leinwand, L.A. (2006) Exercise can prevent and reverse the severity of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Circ. Res. 98:540-8. PUBMED

  • Brown D.A., Chicco A.J., Jew K.N., Johnson M.S., Lynch J.M., Watson P.A, Moore RL. (2005) Cardioprotection afforded by chronic exercise is mediated by the sarcolemmal, and not the mitochondrial, isoform of the KATP channel in the rat. J. Physiol. 569:913-24. PUBMED

  • Watson, P.A., Vinson,C., Nesterova, A. and Reusch, J.E. (2002) Content and activity of cAMP response element-bindng protein regulates platelet-derived growth factor receptor-alpha content in vascular smooth muscles. Endocrinol. 143:2922-2. PUBMED

  • Watson, P.A., Nesterova, A., Burant, C.F., Klemm, D.J., and Reusch, J.E. (2001) Diabetes-related changes in cAMP response element-binding protein content enhances smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration. J. Biol. Chem. 276:46142-50. PUBMED

  • Klemm, D.J., Watson, P.A., Frid, M.G., Dempsey, E.C., Shaack, J., Colton, L.A., Nesterova, A., Stenmark, K.R., and Reusch, J.E. (2001) cAMP response element-binding protein content is a molecular determinant of smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration. J. Biol. Chem. 276: 46132-41. PUBMED