Ralph F. Fregosi, PhD

Professor, Physiology
Professor, Neurobiology 
Professor, Evelyn F Mcknight Brain Institute
Professor, Neuroscience
Professor, Physiological Sciences
 
Education: 
  • University of Massachusetts-Boston,1976 ( B.S., Biological Science)
  • The University of Arizona, 1977 (M.S., Exercise Physiology
  • The University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1985 (Ph.D., Respiratory Physiology)
  • Dartmouth Medical School, 1986-1988 (Postdoctoral, Respiratory Physiology)
Honors and Awards: 
  • Pre-Doctoral Fellow of the American Heart Association, 1984-1986
  • Individual National Research Service Award, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (IF32 HL 07293), 1986-1988
  • American Heart Association Post-Doctoral Fellowship, 1986 (grant was withdrawn due to concurrent NIH funding)
  • FIRST award, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, 1990-95
Major Areas of Research Interest: 
  • Neurophysiology
  • Respiratory Physiology
  • Neural control of respiratory muscles
  • Neuromuscular control of the upper airways
  • Application of respiratory neurpohysiology to biomedical problems 
Student Opportunities Through Research: 
Opportunity to attend national conferences. Research resulting in publication.
 
Selected Publications: 
Iizuka M, Fregosi RF. Influence of hypercapnic acidosis and hypoxia on abdominal expiratory nerve activity in the rat. Respir Physiol Neurobiol. PMID: 17292680, 2007.
 
Van Zutphen C, Janssen P, Hassan M, Cabrera R, Bailey EF, Fregosi RF. Regional velopharyngeal compliance in the rat: influence of tongue muscle contraction. NMR Biomed. PMID: 17274106, 2007.
 
Bailey EF, Huang YH, Fregosi RF. Anatomic consequences of intrinsic tongue muscle activation. J Appl Physiol. 101(5):1377-85, 2006.
 
Fregosi RF, Quan SF, Morgan WL, Goodwin JL, Cabrera R, Shareif I, Fridel KW, Bootzin RR. Pharyngeal critical pressure in children with mild sleep-disordered breathing.
J Appl Physiol. 101(3):734-9, 2006,
 
Bailey EF, Fregosi RF. Modulation of upper airway muscle activities by bronchopulmonary afferents. J Appl Physiol. 101(2):609-17, 2006.
 
Fregosi RF, Quan SF. MRI of pharyngeal airway in children with sleep-disordered breathing. J Appl Physiol. 99(6):2470; author reply 2470, 2005.
 
John J, Bailey EF, Fregosi RF. Respiratory-related discharge of genioglossus muscle motor units. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 172(10):1331-7, 2005.
 
Bailey EF, Janssen PL, Fregosi RF. PO2-dependent changes in intrinsic and extrinsic tongue muscle activities in the rat. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 171(12):1403-7, 2005.
 
Sponsored Research Through MSRP: 
Caitlyn Harrison, (MSRP 2011, 2012): "Influence of Prenatal Nicotine Exposure on the Control of Breathing"
 
Stuti Jaiswal, (MSRP 2007): "Quantitative Analysis of GABA Receptors in the Pre-Botzinger Complex in Nicotine Exposed Noenatal Rats"
 
Advanced Research Distinction Track (RDT): 
Caitlyn Harrison, (RDT Class of 2015): "Influence of Prenatal Nicotine Exposure on the Control of Breathing"
 
NIH Undergraduate Diversity Program: 
Danielle Gomez, 2013: "The Affects of Nicotine Exposure on Breathing";2014: "Does Developmental Nicotine Exposure (DNE) Increase the Risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)?" 2015; "Effects of developmental nicotine exposure (DNE) on the development of brainstem neurons that control breathing and heart rate"
 
Abdullah Aleem, 2012, 2016, "Perinatal Nicotine Exposure and the Neuromuscular Junction"
 
Kimberly Henderson, 2017, "Prenatal Nicotine Exposure in Rat Neonates"; 2019, "Are there Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors  (nAChRs) on Phrenic motor neurons?"
 
NIH High School Student Research Program: 
Abdullah Aleem, Palo Verde High School, 2012
Troy Bowers, Cholla Magnet High School, 2017
 
Tuesday, March 6, 2018