By Research Area
Cardiovascular / Respiratory Biology
We aim to understand the molecular and physiological basis of the heart, lung and blood diseases. The related study of neuronal mechanisms that regulate respiration and blood pressure provides an integrated view of these vital processes. This understanding is leveraged to improve the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.
Abbott, Stephen
Neurobiology of the autonomic nervous system and the homeostatic control of breathing
Bayliss, Douglas A.
Mechanisms of neuromodulation in central neurons
Leitinger, Norbert
Role of lipid oxidation products in inflammation and vascular immunology in atherosclerosis and diabetes
Lynch, Kevin R.
Chemical biology of sphingosine 1-phosphate
Sun, Shengyi Iris
Role of endoplasmic reticulum-associated protein degradation in health and disease
Isakson, Brant
Translating our discoveries in the microcirculation to tangible benefits in patients.
Sheynkman, Gloria M.
Proteoform Systems Biology: proteogenomic approaches to uncover the role of proteomic variation in human disease
Sonkusare, Swapnil
Identify the calcium signaling abnormalities that lead to vascular dysfunction and blood pressure elevation in cardiovascular disorders
Cellular Physiology
Because novel approaches to drug development require a new and comprehensive understanding of cellular organization and communication, the mechanisms by which cells transmit signals within and among cells is an area of emphasis within the Department. The Department of Pharmacology at the University of Virginia has a distinguished scientific history in the study of cellular signaling processes (signal transduction); two recent Nobel Laureates honored for their work deciphering pathways of cellular signaling conducted this work in the Pharmacology Department at the University of Virginia. Today, faculty of the Department of Pharmacology bring to bear a wide range of scientific approaches and technical methods to address fundamental questions of cellular signaling related to neural transmission, hormone and growth factor signaling, cell cycle regulation, neoplasia and regulation of gene expression.
Abbott, Stephen
Neurobiology of the autonomic nervous system and the homeostatic control of breathing
Bayliss, Douglas A.
Mechanisms of neuromodulation in central neurons
Beenhakker, Mark P.
Circuit mechanisms of sleep and epilepsy
Bland, Michelle
Molecular mechanisms linking innate immune and insulin signaling to control cell growth and metabolism
Desai, Bimal N.
Ion channels and Ca2+-signaling in inflammation, immunity and tissue homeostasis
Fox, Todd
Sphingolipids in ocular disease and cancer
Fu, Zheng “John”
Molecular basis of ciliopathies; Signaling mechanisms of cilia-associated kinases
Harris, Thurl E
Molecular mechanisms controlling insulin signaling and fat synthesis.
Martin, Timothy Dean
Identifying tumor selective drug targets, Understanding the genetic drivers of tumor immune evasion
Perez-Reyes, Edward
Exploring epilepsy circuits then preventing seizures using gene therapies. Developing drug-inducible genetic switches for insulin replacement gene therapies.
Shi, Yingtang
Central respiratory circuits, Mechanisms Underlying Breathing Complexity and Central hypoventilation syndrome
Sun, Shengyi Iris
Role of endoplasmic reticulum-associated protein degradation in health and disease
Abbas, Tarek A.
The Ubiquitin System and Human Cancer
Ebrahim, Seham
Cytoskeletal architecture, dynamics and roles in cellular physiology and disease; High-resolution live cell and tissue imaging
Ewald, Sarah
Innate immunity, chronic disease, host-parasite interactions, Toxoplasma gondii, proteomics
Ferris, Heather
Brain metabolism, cognitive decline, insulin signaling and Alzheimer's disease
Garrett-Bakelman, Francine
Acute Myeloid Leukemia: molecular and cellular biology events which mediate aberrant epigenetic and transcriptional mechanisms during disease establishment and progression
Levental, Ilya
Composition, Biophysics and Physiology of Cellular Membranes
Redemann, Stefanie
Chromosome segregation and aneuploidy in meiosis and mitosis
Winckler, Bettina
Endosomal function and dysfunction in neurons. Development of the nervous system: cytoskeleton and membrane traffic in axon and dendrite growth.
Chemical Biology and Molecular Pharmacology
Combining the concepts and methods of biology, chemistry and other physical sciences often enables us to gain insight and manipulate biological systems with precision. We are using analytical and synthetic chemistry to tackle a variety of problems to probe and manipulate molecular mechanisms of various diseases.
Desai, Bimal N.
Ion channels and Ca2+-signaling in inflammation, immunity and tissue homeostasis
Harris, Thurl E
Molecular mechanisms controlling insulin signaling and fat synthesis.
Leitinger, Norbert
Role of lipid oxidation products in inflammation and vascular immunology in atherosclerosis and diabetes
Lynch, Kevin R.
Chemical biology of sphingosine 1-phosphate
Martin, Timothy Dean
Identifying tumor selective drug targets, Understanding the genetic drivers of tumor immune evasion
Perez-Reyes, Edward
Exploring epilepsy circuits then preventing seizures using gene therapies. Developing drug-inducible genetic switches for insulin replacement gene therapies.
Levental, Ilya
Composition, Biophysics and Physiology of Cellular Membranes
Immunity and Inflammation
Inflammation contributes to the pathology of various metabolic, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases. We aim to understand the molecular, physiological and pathological mechanisms that connect the mediators of inflammation with the onset and progression of various diseases.
Abbott, Stephen
Neurobiology of the autonomic nervous system and the homeostatic control of breathing
Desai, Bimal N.
Ion channels and Ca2+-signaling in inflammation, immunity and tissue homeostasis
Bland, Michelle
Molecular mechanisms linking innate immune and insulin signaling to control cell growth and metabolism
Desai, Bimal N.
Ion channels and Ca2+-signaling in inflammation, immunity and tissue homeostasis
Fox, Todd
Sphingolipids in ocular disease and cancer
Leitinger, Norbert
Role of lipid oxidation products in inflammation and vascular immunology in atherosclerosis and diabetes
Lynch, Kevin R.
Chemical biology of sphingosine 1-phosphate
Martin, Timothy Dean
Identifying tumor selective drug targets, Understanding the genetic drivers of tumor immune evasion
Morioka, Sho
Role of Programmed Cell Death in Kidney Injury
Voss, Kelsey
Iron metabolism and Immunometabolism in inflammation and autoimmune diseases
Ebrahim, Seham
Cytoskeletal architecture, dynamics and roles in cellular physiology and disease; High-resolution live cell and tissue imaging
Ewald, Sarah
Innate immunity, chronic disease, host-parasite interactions, Toxoplasma gondii, proteomics
Eyo, Ukpong Bassey
Neuroscience
Ferris, Heather
Brain metabolism, cognitive decline, insulin signaling and Alzheimer's disease
Gaultier, Alban
Exploring new therapeutics avenues to treat Multiple Sclerosis.
Harris, Tajie H.
Immune response to infectious disease in the CNS
Metabolism
The ongoing epidemic of obesity and metabolic syndrome threatens to burden our healthcare system with unsustainable healthcare costs in the coming decades. We aim to understand and manipulate the molecular mechanisms that contribute to obesity and its associated diseases. This knowledge will contribute to novel pharmacological approaches to check the onset and progression of metabolic diseases.
Bland, Michelle
Molecular mechanisms linking innate immune and insulin signaling to control cell growth and metabolism
Desai, Bimal N.
Ion channels and Ca2+-signaling in inflammation, immunity and tissue homeostasis
Fox, Todd
Sphingolipids in ocular disease and cancer
Harris, Thurl E
Molecular mechanisms controlling insulin signaling and fat synthesis.
Martin, Timothy Dean
Identifying tumor selective drug targets, Understanding the genetic drivers of tumor immune evasion
Morioka, Sho
Role of Programmed Cell Death in Kidney Injury
Nieh, Edward Horng-An
Understanding the neural code underlying motivated behaviors like feeding, drinking, and social interaction, with a focus on how malfunction in associated brain areas are involved in diseases like addiction and eating disorders
Perez-Reyes, Edward
Exploring epilepsy circuits then preventing seizures using gene therapies. Developing drug-inducible genetic switches for insulin replacement gene therapies.
Schulman, Ira G.
Regulation of transcription by nuclear hormone receptors, transcriptional control of metabolism and inflammation, small molecule approaches to drug discovery
Voss, Kelsey
Iron metabolism and Immunometabolism in inflammation and autoimmune diseases
Sun, Shengyi Iris
Role of endoplasmic reticulum-associated protein degradation in health and disease
Ewald, Sarah
Innate immunity, chronic disease, host-parasite interactions, Toxoplasma gondii, proteomics
Ferris, Heather
Brain metabolism, cognitive decline, insulin signaling and Alzheimer's disease
Molecular and Systems Neuroscience
Research in Molecular & Systems Neuroscience at UVA has emerged as a highly multi-disciplinary science with enduring mysteries. We are exploring many aspects of this discipline at the level of molecules, cells and circuits. Using a variety of experimental approaches, we hope to improve our understanding of neurophysiology as well as neuropathology.
Researchers focus on the structure and function of neural circuits and systems in a multitude of behaviors and disease states including perception, feeding, drinking, social interactions, as well as diseases and disorders, such as breathing, drug addiction, post-traumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, epilepsy, and Alzheimer’s. We employ a highly multidisciplinary toolkit, including optogenetics, electrophysiology, multiphoton imaging, computational modeling, and developing the next generation of research tools, from gene therapies to sensor molecules.
Abbott, Stephen
Neurobiology of the autonomic nervous system and the homeostatic control of breathing
Bayliss, Douglas A.
Mechanisms of neuromodulation in central neurons
Beenhakker, Mark P.
Circuit mechanisms of sleep and epilepsy
Nieh, Edward Horng-An
Understanding the neural code underlying motivated behaviors like feeding, drinking, and social interaction, with a focus on how malfunction in associated brain areas are involved in diseases like addiction and eating disorders
Perez-Reyes, Edward
Exploring epilepsy circuits then preventing seizures using gene therapies. Developing drug-inducible genetic switches for insulin replacement gene therapies.
Eyo, Ukpong Bassey
Neuroscience
Ferris, Heather
Brain metabolism, cognitive decline, insulin signaling and Alzheimer's disease
Gaultier, Alban
Exploring new therapeutics avenues to treat Multiple Sclerosis.
Harris, Tajie H.
Immune response to infectious disease in the CNS
Lynch, Wendy J.
Behavioral Pharmacology, Sex Differences, Animal Models of Addiction
Winckler, Bettina
Endosomal function and dysfunction in neurons. Development of the nervous system: cytoskeleton and membrane traffic in axon and dendrite growth.