DIVISION OF KINESIOLOGY AND HEALTH
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D. Paul Thomas Associate Dean for Research/College of Health Sciences Professor/Division of Kinesiology and Health Room 114B Corbett Building Phone (307) 766-2044 Fax (307) 766-4098 E-Mail: cymru@uwyo.edu Mailing Address: P. O. Box 3196 Laramie, WY 82071 |
Education
B.Ed., University of Nottingham (UK), 1969
M.A., Michigan State University, 1970
Ph.D., Temple University, 1977
Post Doctoral:
1978-79, University of Pennsylvania, School of Veterinary Medicine
1980-81, Temple University Health Science Center, Section of Cardiology
Principal Research Interests
Dr. Thomas’ research interests relate to cardiac structure and function. More specifically he has been interested in adaptations made by the heart to both physiological and pathological overload. Exercise, a physiological overload, places tremendous stresses on the heart and his laboratory has been studying acute effects and chronic adaptations that the left ventricle makes to these stresses both in terms of cellular (myocyte) and intracellular adaptations as well as the vasculature, microvasculature and extracellular space. In collaboration with Dr. Richard McCormick in the Department of Animal Science at the University of Wyoming, he has been studying both pre- and post-translational modifications of collagen induced by aging, exercise and myocardial infarction. He has examined interactive effects of myocardial infarction and exercise training on extracellular matrix characteristics of the left ventricle. As the depressed myocardial function associated with a heart attack can result in altered peripheral vascular function, he has also been studying this phenomenon in collaboration with Professor Hudlicka at the University of Birmingham Medical School, in the UK.
Representative Publications
Thomas, D.P., R.J. McCormick, S.D. Zimmerman, R.K. Vadlamudi, and L.E. Gosselin. Aging- and training-induced alterations in collagen characteristics of rat left ventricle and papillary muscle. Am. J. Physiol. 263 (Heart Circ. Physiol. 32):H778-H783, 1992.
Julin, C. M., and D. P. Thomas. The effects of age and exercise training on size and composition of the rat left main coronary artery. J. Gerontol. 48:B101-B107, 1993.
Zimmerman, S. D., R. J. McCormick, R. K. Vadlamudi, and D. P. Thomas. The effects of aging and endurance training on collagen properties in fast- and slow-twitch rat limb muscle. J. Appl. Physiol. 75:1670-1674, 1993.
McCormick, R.J., T.I. Musch, B.C. Bergman, and D.P. Thomas. Regional differences in left ventricular collagen accumulation and mature crosslinking following myocardial infarction in rats. Am. J. Physiol. 266 (Heart Circ. Physiol. 35):H354-H359, 1994.
Waldo, M. J., B. A. Ide and D. P. Thomas. Postcardiac-event elderly: effect of exercise on cardiopulmonary function. J. Gerontol. Nursing 21:12-19, 1995.
Rule, D. C., M. K. Andersen, J. W. Bailey, L. Swain, S. J. Ficek, and D. P. Thomas. Frozen storage of ovine, and rat tissues adversely affects lipoprotein lipase activity. J. Nutr. Biochem. 7:577-581, 1996.
McCormick, R. J. and D. P. Thomas. Collagen crosslinking in the heart: relationship to development and function. Basic and Applied Myology. 8:143-150,1998.
Thomas, D. P., O. Hudlická, M. D. Brown, and D. Deveci. Alterations in small arterioles precede changes in limb skeletal muscle following myocardial infarction. Am. J. Physiol: Heart Circ. Physiol. 275:H1032-H1039, 1998.
Gosselin, L. E., C. Adams, T. A. Cotter, R. J. McCormick, and D. P. Thomas. Effect of exercise on passive stiffness in locomotor skeletal muscle: role of extracellular matrix. J. Appl. Physiol. 85:1011-1016, 1998.
Thomas, D. P. and O. Hudlická. Arteriolar reactivity and capillarization in chronically stimulated rat limb skeletal muscle post-MI. J. Appl. Physiol. 87:2259-2265, 1999
Thomas, D. P., S. D. Zimmerman, T. R. Hansen, D. T. Martin, and R. J. McCormick. Collagen gene expression in rat left ventricle: interactive effect of age and exercise training. J. Appl. Physiol. 89:1462-1468, 2000.
Thomas, D. P., T. A. Cotter, X. Li, R.J. McCormick and L. E. Gosselin. Exercise training attenuates aging-associated increases in collagen concentration and crosslinking in left but not right ventricle in the rat. Eur. J. Appl. Physiol. 85:164-169, 2001.
Zimmerman, S.D., D.P. Thomas, S.G. Velleman, X. Li, T.R. Hansen and R.J. McCormick. Time course of collagen and decorin changes in rat cardiac and skeletal muscle following myocardial infarction. Am. J. Physiol: Heart Circ. Physiol. H1816-H1822, 2001.
McGowan, B.S., C. B. Scott, A. Mu, R. J. McCormick, D. P. Thomas, and K. B. Margulies. Unloading-induced remodeling in the normal and hypertrophic left ventricle. Am. J. Physiol: Heart Circ. Physiol. H2061-H2068, 2003.
Smith-Sonneborn, J., H. Gotsch, E. Cubin, P. Oeltgen and D. P. Thomas. Alternative strategy for stress tolerance: opiods. J. Gerontol. Biol. Sci. 59A, No. 5, 433-440, 2004.
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