The kidney not only filters metabolic wastes and toxins from the
body, it also regulates the body's water balance, electrolyte
balance, and acid-base balance, blood pressure, and blood flow.
Despite intense research, aspects of kidney functions remain incompletely understood.
I will discuss how our group use mathematical analysis and modeling
techniques to address a host of previously unanswered questions in renal physiology and pathophysiology: Why is the mammalian kidney so susceptible to hypoxia, despite receiving ~25% of the cardiac output?
What are the mechanisms underlying the development of acute kidney
injury in a patient who has undergone cardiac surgery performed on
cardiopulmonary bypass? How is renal blood flow affected by the
interactions between negative and positive feedback mechanisms?