BREATHE T32 postdoc and Mitchell Lab alum, Dr. Alex Marciante, will be opening her new lab in the Department of Neuroscience at the University of Florida College of Medicine in March 2026! The laboratory will investigate factors that influence the neural control of breathing, focusing on how genetics (such as APOE4), sex differences, and neural injury contribute to destabilized breathing and impaired respiratory neuroplasticity throughout the daily rest/active cycle and across the lifespan. The lab’s goal is to utilize neuromodulation-based neurotherapeutics—such as acute intermittent hypoxia protocols and neurostimulation—to improve respiratory function in conditions where breathing is compromised.
Spinal injury has devastating impacts on both respiratory and non-respiratory motor function, and up to 74% of all spinal injuries are estimated to have a co-occurring brain injury. Although the Marciante Lab will primarily examine the impact of brain injury on respiratory function, close collaboration with the BREATHE Center and the spinal cord injury research community offers significant opportunity to better understand injury progression. This work will also help clarify the contributions of distinct elements of injury, which can differentially affect outcomes and create opportunity to further refine neurotherapeutic precision.
The lab will be supported initially by a NIH/NHLBI-funded K99/R00 Transition to Independence Award and support from the UF College of Medicine, Department of Neuroscience, the McKnight Brain Institute, and the UF Center for Cognitive Aging and Memory Clinical Translational Research (CAM-CTRP). Additional support and resources will be provided by the UF BREATHE and BRAIN Centers.
Reflecting on this next step, Dr. Marciante shared: I am grateful to be a part of the UF research community and am looking forward to beginning my independent research program here soon. Congratulations, Dr. Marciante!