Swapnil Sonkusare, PhD
swapnil.sonkusare@virginia.edu
Associate Professor with Tenure

Director of Graduate Studies in Physiology
Dept. of Molecular Physiology and Biological Physics

The research in my laboratory focuses on the regulation of blood flow and blood pressure by calcium signaling mechanisms in the vascular wall. I have investigated vascular calcium channels in health and disease throughout my scientific career. My ultimate goals are to define the abnormalities in vascular calcium signaling mechanisms in cardiovascular disorders and to identify novel therapeutic targets. My laboratory routinely uses high-end calcium imaging, superresolution imaging, patch-clamp electrophysiology, vascular assays, mouse models of vascular disorders, and transgenic mice. Current NIH- and AHA-funded studies in my laboratory use this unique combination of techniques to address 1) new calcium signaling mechanisms that control vascular contractility and blood pressure in systemic and pulmonary vasculature; 2) contribution of impaired vascular calcium signaling and vascular inflammation to obesity-induced hypertension.

I invite you to join our group and perform cutting-edge research on vascular calcium signaling mechanisms!

Yen-Lin Chen, PhD
yc2gs@virginia.edu
Research Scientist

Dr. Chen completed his Ph.D. in Medical Physiology from Texas A & M University. During his Ph.D., Dr. Chen studied the mechanisms that cause enhanced constriction of retinal venules under hyperglycemic conditions. Dr. Chen started working in Sonkusare lab in 2019, and is currently studying vascular ion channels and calcium signaling mechanisms that control endothelial function in health and disease. He mainly uses high-speed calcium imaging and patch clamp techniques.

Mani Kuppusamy, PhD
mk9wu@virginia.edu
Research Scientist

Dr. Kuppusamy is a postdoctoral fellow in the Sonkusare lab. He obtained his PhD in Cardiovascular Sciences from University of Padua, where he identified a potassium channel mutation in primary aldosteronism patients. He joined the Sonkusare laboratory in December 2020. His research interest are ion channel physiology and electrophysiology in metabolic disorders.

Golnar Eftekhari, PhD
jkf5sm@virginia.edu
Postdoctoral Research Associate

Dr. Golnar Eftekhari obtained her Ph.D in physiology from Tarbiat Modares University. She studied the intrinsic properties of Nucleus Tractus Solitarious neurons during polymicrobial sepsis and showed that the excitability of these neurons increased in neonatal septic rats. Dr. Eftekhari joined the Sonkusare laboratory in December 2022. Her interest is working on ion channels activity, especially the calcium release activated channels in pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Ramon Ayon, PhD
rja2z@virginia.edu
Research Instructor

Dr. Ayon is a Research Instructor in the lab of Dr. Avril Somlyo with a co-mentorship under Dr. Sonkusare. He received his PhD in Pharmacology and Physiology from the University of Nevada, Reno and have since focused his research on investigating the role of ion channels and membrane receptors in pulmonary vascular physiology and pathophysiology. His current research interests involve the exploration of novel signaling pathways mediated by RSK2 that regulate vascular resistance, myogenic tone, and blood pressure. In addition, he is investigating the influence of smooth muscle microdomains on vascular aging.

Eliska Klimentova, MS
ek8uy@virginia.edu
Laboratory Specialist

Eliska Klimentova is our lab manager. She earned her degree in Neuroscience from the University of St Andrews and her MS in Chemistry from NC State University. She ensures the lab runs smoothly, maintains the numerous mouse colonies, and helps with experiments as needed.

Yashu Tang
Undergraduate Researcher

Yashu joined the Sonkusare laboratory in Fall 2021. She is currently assisting with the analysis of high-speed confocal calcium imaging data. Yashu is also assisting mouse work and histology.

Sree Katragadda
Undergraduate Researcher

Sree has been working in Sonkusare lab since November 2022. Since then, has taken up many responsibilities, including 3D printing of complex chambers for experiments, genotyping of 25+ transgenic mouse colonies, and making sophisticated schematics for our major NIH grant applications.

Caroline Cheung
Undergraduate Researcher

Caroline is an undergraduate student at UVA school of Arts and Sciences. She joined the Sonkusare laboratory in Summer 2022. Caroline is assisting with genotyping, histology, and immunostaining studies.