M. Harold Laughlin, Ph.D.

Professor and Chairman Department of Veterinary Biomedical Sciences LaughlinH@missouri.edu

Research Interests
My primary research interest is the study of the cardiorespiratory effects of exercise. Our goal in the laboratory is to enhance the understanding of the complex changes in coronary circulation and skeletal muscle vascular beds resulting from exercise training.

Such training produces an increased capacity to transport oxygen and other nutrients in myocardial and skeletal muscle. We have found that changes in vascular transport capacity, in training, are associated with growth of new capillaries, enlargement of arteries and veins, and alterations in the control of blood flow. Currently, our laboratory is investigating the mechanisms responsible for these changes. Studies are conducted with a variety of model systems including isolated hearts, isolated muscle tissue, single blood vessels, and conscious, chronically-instrumented animals subjected to exercise. The effects of training on biochemical and histological characteristics of the muscles are also measured. We are particularly interested in the processes that control vascular endothelium and smooth muscle contraction.

Professional Background

• Obtained Ph.D. in physiology, University of Iowa
• Postdoctoral studies at the Cardiovascular Center, University of Iowa
• Joined Department in 1987, joint appointment in Veterinary Biomedical Sciences
• Chair, Department of Veterinary Biomedical Sciences
• Elected member of numerous national and international societies including
• The American Physiological Society and the Microcirculatory Society
• Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine and the Circulation Council of the American Heart Association
• Member of editorial board of the Journal of Applied Physiology
• Served on the Respiratory and Applied Physiology Study Section of the National Institutes of Health
• Reviewer for The National Institutes of Health
• NIH Research Career Development Awardee
• Research funded by the National Institutes of Health and the American Heart Association

Selected Publications

• Laughlin, M.H., C.C. Hale, L. Novela, D. Gute, N. Hamilton, and C.D. Ianuzzo. Biochemical characterization of the exercise trained porcine myocardium. J. Appl. Physiol. 71:229-235, 1991.
• Kuo, L., W.M. Chilian, M.J. Davis, and M.H. Laughlin. Endotoxin impairs flow-induced vasodilation of porcine coronary arterioles. Am. J. Physiol. 262:H1838- H1845, 1992.
• Delp, M.D., R.M. McAllister, and M.H. Laughlin. Exercise training alters endothelium- dependent vasoreactivity of rat abdominal aorta. J. Appl. Physiol. 75:1354-1363, 1993.
• Muller, J.M., P.R. Myers, and M.H. Laughlin. Vasodilator responses of coronary resistance arteries from exercise trained pigs. Circulation 89:2308-2314, 1994.
• Oltman, C.L., J.L. Parker, and M.H. Laughlin. Endothelium-dependent vasodilation of proximal coronary arteries from exercise-trained pigs. J. Appl. Physiol. 79:33-40, 1995.
• Gute, D., C. Fraga, M.H. Laughlin, and J.F. Amann. Regional changes in capillary supply in skeletal muscle of high intensity endurance trained rats. J. Appl. Physiol. 81(2):619-626, 1996.

Methodologies/Techniques