Cores & Technologies - Phenotyping & Physiology Core

Center Cores & Technologies - Phenotyping & Physiology Core

The Phenotyping Core is designed to evaluate the functional properties of muscles, joints, and whole animals in animal models created by the various Center investigators or directly in human muscle. The Phenotyping Core will interface with the High Throughput Cell Analysis Core and the Imaging Core by helping Center investigators identify the appropriate functional evaluation of muscle, with special consideration of the specific manipulation created by the Center investigator. The quantitative functional evaluation conducted by the Phenotyping Core will often be combined with structural data obtained from the Imaging Core thereby providing possible mechanistic explanations for any functional effects that are found.
Thus, the Phenotyping Core will provide accessibility to sophisticated physiological and biomechanical testing capabilities to all Center investigators.

physiology

Core Director

Samuel Ward, PhD
Samuel R. Ward, PT, PhD
Samuel R. Ward, PT, PhD is the director of the SDMRC Phenotyping & Physiology Core.
More information on the core directors and their research interests.

Contact:
Telephone: 858-534-4918
Fax: 858-552-4381
s1ward@ucsd.edu

Specific Aims of the Core

  1. To provide training and technical assistance in skeletal muscle identification, dissection and mounting for isolated contractile and metabolic studies of isolated muscles.
  2. To provide training and technical assistance in developing specialized “jigs” and interfaces to measure joint or muscle torque, or to conduct whole animal functional measurements.
  3. To provide technical assistance with snap-freezing and routine histological processing of skeletal muscle including hematoxylin and eosin, immunohistochemistry, quantitative morphometry, and qualitative morphology.
  4. To provide training and technical assistance in measuring various aspects of metabolism either in vivo or ex vivo in muscle.

Available Technologies

  • Measurement of in vivo hindlimb torque mechanics.
  • In vitro active mechanical testing of small muscle.
  • Measurement of passive single muscle fiber mechanics in vitro.
  • Confocal imaging during mechanical muscle testing
  • Ex vivo metabolic testing of muscle
  • Preparation of frozen muscle sections


Please contact Dr. Ward directly for service inquiries.