Postdoc, Cardiovascular Physiology, Penn State Heart and Vascular Institute
Ph.D., Exercise Physiology, Kent State University
M.S., Exercise Science, Indiana University of Pennsylvania
B.S. Exercise Science, Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Biography
Jon Stavres earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from Kent State University under the mentorship of Dr. John McDaniel, after which he completed his postdoctoral training at the Penn State Heart and Vascular Institute with Dr. Lawrence I. Sinoway.
Current Courses
KNH 382 Physical Activity and Fitness Assessment (2 sections)
Research Interests
My research interests are centered around the control of blood pressure and blood flow at rest and during exercise in humans. It is widely understood that blood pressure increases in response to exercise, which is necessary for increasing blood flow, and thus convective oxygen transport, to the active skeletal muscle. However, the physiological mechanisms governing these responses are both complex and fascinating. Much of my work focuses on the afferent exercise pressor reflex, which is comprised of the muscle mechano- and metaboreflex pathways. Through our work in healthy adults, we have shown that the exercise pressor reflex exerts an additive influence when combined with other sympathetic stimuli, such as the Valsalva maneuver, and we have also shown that the magnitude of the exercise pressor response is largely tied to strength and fat-free mass. Furthermore, we also found evidence that individuals with cardiometabolic disorders (e.g., metabolic syndrome) demonstrate exaggerated exercise pressor and metaboreflex responses, which is not solely explained by the individual components of the clustering syndrome (e.g., hypertension, central obesity, or hyperglycemia). In recent years, our team has continued to pursue questions related to autonomic and cardiovascular function in individuals with cardiometabolic disorders, and his line of investigation has been supported by >$300,000 in NIH funding. Here at Miami, we are continuing this line of study, while also exploring novel treatment options for mitigating exaggerated blood pressure responses and examining the effects of rapid weight loss (including GLP-1-mediated weight loss) in individuals with cardiometabolic disease.
Students in my lab serve a very important role in these projects. Over the past 5 years, I have mentored twenty undergraduate students and nine graduate students, all of whom were trained to collect, analyze, and disseminate research data. Through their work in the lab, these students have earned authorship on scientific manuscripts and have presented the lab’s work at local, regional, and national scientific conferences.
See CV for a full list of publications and grant-funded projects.
Professional Affiliations
American College of Sports Medicine- Professional Member
