Life Lines by Dr. Dolittle

Comparative Physiology

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What’s up with those lung valves?

The Plenary Lecture at this year’s Comparative Physiology meeting was given by Dr. Colleen Farmer at Trinity College in Dublin who spoke about the diversity of vertebrate respiratory systems including aerodynamic valves that are found in birds and various species of reptiles. These aerodynamic valves allow air to flow in one direction during both inspiration and expiration as opposed to bidirectional flow in mammals. Examination of red-eared sliders (shown above) […]

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Physiology in Arizona – Part 1

This past weekend the Arizona Physiological Society held their 11th annual conference on the Tempe campus of Arizona State University. There were so many oral and poster presentations on comparative physiology that I will spend this entry focusing on the oral sessions. The Keynote address was given by Dr. Michael Joyner (Mayo Clinic, Rochester) who spoke about the importance of not just focusing research efforts on reductionist approaches, including many […]

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Defining Physiology

Kudos to Mael Lemoine and Thomas Pradeu who recently published a paper in Physiology that attempted to define physiology’s place in modern science. Historically, physiology has held importance as a fundamental discipline on which other disciplines such as medicine and biological sciences were built. As such, the field of physiology has given birth to several modern disciplines including immunology, endocrinology, neuroscience and of course, the wave of “omics” research. Lemoine and […]

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Comparative Physiologist: Berry Pinshow, PhD

I came across a really interesting interview of Dr. Barry Pinshow, a comparative physiologist and member of the American Physiological Society. In this Living History of Physiology video, Dr. Pinshow talks about growing up in South Africa and his decision to move to Israel as a teen. He also discusses how he became interested in science, his research in desert biology and the influential people in his career. Very inspiring!

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2018 Winners

I am pleased to showcase this year’s Comparative and Evolutionary Physiology Section (CEPS)  award recipients at the Experimental Biology conference. Winners received their awards at the CEPS banquet last week. In earlier posts, I introduced this year’s Dr. Dolittle Travel awardee as well as Dr. Stanley Hillman, this year’s August Krogh Distinguished Lecturer. Here are the rest of award recipients: The New Investigator Award was earned by Dr. Allyson Hindle […]

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2018 August Krogh Lecturer, Dr. Stanley Hillman

Dr. Stanley Hillman was the recipient of this year’s August Krogh Distinguished Lectureship of the American Physiological Society’s Comparative and Evolutionary Physiology section. This award was named after Dr. August Krogh, born 1874 in Denmark. His dissertation focused on studying gas exchange in frogs. In 1908 he became an Associate Professor and later chair of the Department of Zoophysiology at the University of Copenhagen. He was awarded a Nobel Prize […]

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Comparative Physiology @ Experimental Biology

I am printing my posters and planning my schedule for the 2018 Experimental Biology conference, which starts this weekend. This is no doubt the highlight of my year! I am looking forward to the comparative physiology sessions. Judging from the program, I think this is going to be a really exciting conference! This year’s August Krogh Distinguished Lectureship will be given by Dr. Stanley Hillman from Portland State University who […]

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Passing gas

Many children (and adults) find humor in flatulence. If you count yourself among these individuals, then a new book written by zoologist Dani Rabaiotti and ecologist Nick Caruso, coming out in April 2018, is a must-read. The book examines which animals truly pass gas and is aptly titled, “Does it Fart?” No longer will you be limited to only blaming it on the dog or cat. Although you will not […]

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What a pain!

I read an interesting review article published recently in Physiology. The review discussed how various animals sense pain. Perhaps understanding how animals detect pain will lead to better pain management techniques for animals and humans.    Our bodies have special sensors, called nociceptors, that detect noxious stimuli that could injure tissues. Stimulation of these receptors is what allows you to move your hand away from a hot stove even before your […]

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Dr. Hannah Carey in the spotlight

Congratulations Dr. Hannah Carey, 80th President of the American Physiological Society (2007-2008) and fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences, which recently interviewed her about her research on hibernation.  Dr. Carey is a comparative physiologist and professor of Comparative Biosciences at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine. Her current research focus is on how the gut microbes of 13-lined ground squirrels change during hibernation. According […]

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