WEBINAR—Next-generation Techniques for Understanding Neural Hemodynamic Control

October 4, 2022
12 p.m. EDT

The nervous and cardiovascular systems are exquisitely linked to control hemodynamics and to maintain organ perfusion. In many neurological conditions, cardiovascular control is disrupted, leading to inappropriate hemodynamics and organ trauma. This is particularly true in the context of spinal cord injury, where the disconnection of the supraspinal hemodynamic regulatory centers leaves the sympathetic nervous system orphaned and prone to life-threatening erratic blood pressure. 

In this webinar, Aaron Phillips, PhD, will review next-generation techniques for interrogating the sympathetic nervous system in the context of hemodynamic control, using the clinical setting with humans and the preclinical setting with nonhuman animals. The program will: 

• review basic neurovascular anatomy,  

• discuss new computational approaches for data analysis,  

• review natural and biomimetic artificial closed-loop control systems for hemodynamic stability,  

• review virally mediated neuron tracing specific to sympathetic hemodynamic control and  

• describe neuron-specific sympathetic nervous system manipulation for establishing causal mechanisms through optogenetics and chemogenetics. 

Key learning objectives include understanding of:  

• sympathetic neuro-anatomy relevant to blood pressure control, 

• closed-loop control implemented in spinal cord stimulation approaches, 

• dimensionality reduction approaches for hemodynamic analysis, 

• optogenetic manipulation of sympathetic preganglionic neurons in preclinical models, and 

• electrical epidural stimulation for blood pressure stabilization after spinal cord injury. 

Speaker

Aaron Phillips, PhD, is an assistant professor at the University of Calgary in Canada. He was trained in biosciences and mathematics. Appreciation of the elegant interactions between the nervous and cardiovascular systems, and how these interactions are disrupted in clinical conditions, has driven Phillips’ research into the development of novel therapeutics for people with neurological health issues.