Renal blood flow,sodium handling and the DASH diet

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant):This application for a K24 award is to provide support for Paul R. Conlin, MD to allow him protected time to devote to patient-oriented research and to act as a mentor for beginning clinical investigators. His long-term goal is to make significant contributions to the understanding of lifestyle modifications as they impact on renal and cardiovascular disease risk factors through clinical trials. Dr. Conlin has investigated the impact of dietary patterns and sodium on renal/adrenal function and cardiovascular disease risk factors. He was recently a collaborating investigator in the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) and DASH-Sodium studies, which showed that a low-fat diet enriched in fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy products (DASH diet) either alone or with sodium restriction significantly lowered blood pressure. He is now studying the effect of three dietary patterns on renal and cardiovascular disease risk factors (blood pressure and lipid profile). This application proposes new specific aims in which he will study the effects of the DASH diet on the kidney- in particular, renal blood flow, renal vascular resistance and sodium excretion. These studies will test the hypotheses that the DASH diet vasodilates the renal vasculature and enhances sodium excretion in a manner that mimics ACE inhibition. These studies will be performed in individuals with high normal and Stage 1 hypertension, and subgroup analyses will be performed in African Americans. The results of these studies will reveal the added-value of the DASH diet on risk factors and protective effects on renal function in patients at risk for renal/cardiovascular disease. Dr. Conlin is fully committed to recruiting and mentoring junior clinical investigators destined for careers in patient-oriented research, particularly those interested in renal cardiovascular physiology, interventional nutrition or academic endocrinology, He has recently mentored 6 fellows and junior faculty, many of whom have achieved independent grant support. In addition, he will teach junior patient-oriented research investigators in the K30 funded "Scholars in Clinical Science" Program at Harvard Medical School. Thus, with the support of this award he will have significant impact on future patient-oriented research at multiple levels.