System for thermodilution measurement of limb blood flow in exercising humans

我的研究计划的长期目标是：了解呼吸和心血管系统如何相互作用，反应和适应生理压力以及生物性别如何影响这些关系。 我们对运动中呼吸机制的了解是基于使用男性受试者数据的研究。 我最近的NSERC资助的工作表明，在肺结构和功能方面存在性别差异，这意味着健康女性的肺系统在运动过程中与男性相比处于劣势。 为了了解呼吸和心血管系统如何相互作用，并了解男女之间的差异，需要测量血流（热稀释法）。 本申请寻求在运动期间测量流向腿部的血流的系统。 拟议的研究将通过量化血流和确定流向呼吸肌的部分来解决重要的未知数。我将使用所要求的系统作为我的NSERC研究计划的一部分，我的研究生将使用它作为他们的科学训练的一部分。 我的实验室与其他对心肺生理学感兴趣的科学家合作。 今后的合作努力将利用所要求的系统，并将最大限度地利用该系统。这项研究将对基础的人类血管和呼吸生物学具有重要意义，并将为呼吸系统如何影响心血管控制提供新的知识。 这种关系经常被低估，证据开始表明这种关系在健康的人类中很重要，但我们对性别差异的理解非常有限。 这一设备要求的主要受益者有两方面。 首先，研究生和博士后研究员将接受使用最先进方法的培训。 其次，在生理学研究领域工作的其他研究人员将受益于使用所要求的设备所产生的研究结果的最终出版。

The long-term objective of my research program is: to understand how the respiratory and cardiovascular systems interact, respond and adapt to physiological stress and how biological sex affects these relationships. Our knowledge of the mechanics of respiration during exercise is based on studies that have used data from male subjects. My recent NSERC funded work has shown that there are sex-based differences in pulmonary structure and function meaning that the pulmonary system of healthy females is at a disadvantage compared to their male counterparts during exercise. In order to understand how the respiratory and cardiovascular systems interact and understand male-female differences measure of blood flow (thermodilution) is required. The current application seeks system to measure blood flow to the legs during exercise. The proposed studies will address important unknowns by quantifying blood flow and determining the fraction that is directed to the respiratory muscles. I will use the requested system as part of my NSERC research program and my graduate students will use it as part of their scientific training. My laboratory collaborates with other scientists with interests in cardiorespiratory physiology. Future collaborative endeavours will utilize the requested system and usage will be maximized. The proposed research will have significance for basic human vascular and respiratory biology and will provide new knowledge of how the respiratory system influences cardiovascular control. This relationship that has often been under appreciated and evidence is beginning to show that this relationship is important in healthy humans but our understanding of sex-based differences is very limited. The principal beneficiaries of this equipment request are two-fold. First, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows will be trained in the use of state-of-the-art methods. Second, other researchers working in the area of physiology research will benefit from the ultimate publication of research results stemming from use of the requested equipment.