Chronic Intermittent Hypoxia Research

Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea develop recurrent hypoxia throughout the night. The Physiological Genomics Laboratory, under the direction of Drs. Chen and Scharf, is using a rodent model, chronic intermittent hypoxia, to study the ways in which this insult affects myocardial function. We have already demonstrated that oxidative stress is associated with decreased LV function in this model.

Studies ranging from whole animal to individual myocytes are being carried out to explore these findings. We particularly interested in the possible therapeutic role of antioxidants in this model.