Our research is focused on the plasticity of sympathetic neurons. Some of the questions that we're interested in include how postganglionic sympathetic axons regenerate compared to other neuron types, as well as how sympathetic innervation regulates the function of distal tissues that they innervate. The sympathetic nervous system is well known to be responsible for a wide range of homeostatic mechanisms.
More recently, it was discovered that the sympathetic nervous system is also important for maintaining the integrity and function of neuromuscular junctions. This is a fundamental finding that requires a re-imagining of the classic nerve-muscle interface. We've established that postganglionic lumbar sympathetic neurons do not regenerate in response to classic nerve regeneration interventions such as electrical stimulation and conditioning lesions.
There's something innately different about this class of neurons compared to motor and sensory neurons. Using a surgical lumbar sympathectomy allows for anatomically-specific ablation of the postganglionic sympathetic system that enervates the lower limbs. Although chemical sympathectomies are possible, using a surgical method limits off-target effects as well as the potential for regeneration.
Mainstream use of the surgical lumbar sympathectomy has allowed for investigations into the role of sympathetic innervation in exercise-induced metabolic changes in muscle. This protocol can also be adapted to extract these ganglia for neuronal cell culture, as well as for retrograde tracing experiments in postmortem animals.
