Respiratory and Smooth Muscle Biology
Smooth muscle research in the following areas is being conducted. Our major goals are to elucidate the mechanisms (biophysical and biochemical) of smooth muscle contraction at crossbridge level and to determine how these are altered in pathophysiological states such as asthma, essential hypertension and anaphylactic shock.
- Physiology and Biochemistry of Normal Smooth Muscle:
- Ultrastructure and immunohistochemistry of airway (ASM) and vascular smooth muscle (VSM)
- Mechanical properties of ASM and VSM
- Fluorospectrometric studies of ASM during contraction:
- Biochemical properties of ASM
- Airway smooth muscle cell culture characteristics and study of regulation of phases of the cell cycle in controls and asthmatic models using flow cytometry
- Pathophysiology of Smooth Muscle in:
- Asthma
- Essential hypertension
- Anaphylactic shock
Current members are Dr. Andrew Halayko, who leads the Airway Cell and Molecular Biology Lab, and Dr. Newman Stephens, who leads the Airway Smooth Muscle Physiology Lab.
Training Programs - Graduate student and post-doctoral training positions are available under the supervision of division members, who should be contacted directly with any enquiries. In addition, The Division of Smooth Muscle and Lung Biology is affiliated with two Training Programs that offer competitive trainee support; The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Strategic Training Program in Allergy and Asthma, and the Biology of Breathing Research Theme in the Manitoba Institute of Child Health.