Michael Delp, Ph.D.

Interests

My research is primarily focused on understanding the effects of physical activity on the cardiovascular system. We use exercise training to investigate the effects of high levels of physical activity, while aging and spaceflight (simulated and actual) are used to model lower levels of physical activity. According to the American Heart Association, physical inactivity is a major risk factor for developing coronary artery disease, stroke and peripheral vascular disorders. It also contributes to other risk factors, including obesity, high blood pressure, low levels of HDL cholesterol, and diabetes.

Education

I received a BS degree in Biomedical Chemistry from Oral Roberts University and MA and PhD degrees in Exercise Physiology from the University of Georgia.  I subsequently received training as an Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellow at the University of Konstanz in Germany and as a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, at the University of Missouri.

Publications and Other Scholarly Activities

Muller-Delp, JM, SA Spier, MW Ramsey, and MD Delp. Aging impairs endothelium-dependent vasodilation in rat skeletal muscle arterioles. Am. J. Physiol. Heart Circ. Physiol. 283: H1662-H1672, 2002.

Prisby, RD, MW Ramsey, BJ Behnke, JM Dominguez, AJ Donato, MR Allen, and MD Delp. Aging reduces skeletal blood flow, endothelium-dependent vasodilation and nitric oxide bioavailability in rats. J. Bone Min. Res. 22: 1280-1288, 2007.

Behnke, BJ, MW Ramsey, JN Stabley, JM Dominguez, RT Davis, DJ McCullough, JM Muller-Delp, and MD Delp. Effects of aging and exercise training on skeletal muscle blood flow and resistance artery morphology. J. Appl. Physiol. 113: 1699-1708, 2012.

Behnke, BJ, JN Stabley, DJ McCullough, RT Davis, JM Dominguez, JM Muller-Delp, and MD Delp. Effects of spaceflight and ground recovery on mesenteric artery and vein constrictor properties in mice. FASEB J. 27: 399-409, 2013.

Sofronova, SI, OS Tarasova, D Gaynullina, AA Borzykh, BJ Behnke, JN Stabley, DJ McCullough, JJ Maraj, M Hanna, JM Muller-Delp, OL Vinogradova, and MD Delp. Spaceflight on the Bion-M1 biosatellite alters cerebral artery vasomotor and mechanical properties in mice. J. Appl. Physiol. 118: 830-838, 2015.

Delp, MD, JM Charvat, CL Limoli, RK Globus, and P Ghosh. Apollo lunar astronauts show higher cardiovascular disease mortality: Possible deep space radiation effects on the vascular endothelium. Sci. Rep. 6: 29901, 2016.

Accomplishments

• As an undergraduate student, received the Collegiate Research Presentation Award in the area of Biochemistry and Physiology from the Oklahoma Academy of Science
• As a graduate student, received a Research/Teaching Merit Award from the University of Georgia Graduate School
• As an assistant professor, received the New Investigator Award from the American College of Sports Medicine
• One study is the 10th most highly cited manuscript published in the Journal of Applied Physiology: Delp, MD, and C Duan. Composition and size of type I, IIA, IID/X and IIB fibers and citrate synthase activity of rat skeletal muscle. J. Appl. Physiol. 80: 261-270, 1996 (source: Journal of Applied Physiology website)
• Have been continuously funded by NASA since 1995
• As a Principle Investigator I have been involved in studies flown on four Space Shuttle missions, one Russian Bion satellite mission, and three missions to the International Space Station