Research

Welcome to the Program of Molecular Perioperative Medicine and Genomics. Our mission is to improve perioperative medical outcomes through innovative science and clinical research. The department’s research activities are directed by Dr. Steffen E. Meiler, Vice Chair of Research, who joined the Medical College of Georgia in November 2002. Prior to his arrival at MCG, Dr. Meiler served 10 years as a faculty member at the Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School. The department’s research facilities occupy approximately 2500 square feet of state-of-the-art research space and are located amidst a thriving scientific community at MCG’s Research Park. At the center of the research program stands an international staff of highly competent and enthusiastic scientists. A strong collaborative spirit among MCG’s clinical and basic science departments and the many excellent research core facilities further contribute to the success of our mission. Our research program pursues two major trajectories of investigation with a strong focus towards translational research.

1. Sickle Cell Disease SCD) continues to be an important clinical problem around the time of surgery and anesthesia. In the United States approximately 80,000 people are affected by the disease and to date therapeutic interventions are limited to supportive measures only. Our laboratory investigates the molecular physiology and therapeutic role of the biological gas, nitric oxide (NO), in sickle cell disease. This work was pioneered by Dr. C. Alvin Head, Chair of the Department, and is largely based on the observation that NO abrogates the abnormal tendency of sickle hemoglobin to polymerize to an insoluble state under hypoxic conditions. Consequently, sickle red blood cells become more resistant to cell shape deformities and they appear to adhere far less to the vascular endothelium. Ongoing studies continue to address the mechanism of NO’s effect in SCD and promise to have a significant impact on the (perioperative) treatment of this disease, in particular during vaso-occlusive crisis. Dr Head’s original contributions to this field have earned him two U.S. patents.


2. Cardiovascular events, such as myocardial infarction and cardiac death persist as serious complications after anesthesia and surgery. The observation that coronary plaque rupture is more closely related to the inflammatory state of the lesion rather than lesion size alone has motivated our laboratory to study basic mechanisms of endothelial cell activation. These investigations address the inability of present anesthesia management strategies to protect the vascular endothelium from the inflammatory response during the perioperative period. The work of Dr. Meiler and his colleagues in this area received nternational attention and was awarded the recognition of “Best of Scientific Session” at the Annual Meeting of the American Heart Association in November 2002.

We welcome interested research applicants to contact Dr. Meiler directly for further details.

Steffen E. Meiler, M.D., smeiler@mcg.edu
Associate Professor
Vice Chairman of Research
Director, Program of Molecular Perioperative Medicine and Genomics
Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine
Medical College of Georgia
1120 15th Street, CB-2402
Augusta, GA  30912-2700

Office: (706) 721-3287
Fax:    (706) 721-4150