My laboratory studies the role of the central nervous system in the regulation of the cardiovascular system, and water and electrolyte balance. We study how the brain participates in the normal maintenance of blood pressure and fluid balance, a process called homeostasis. We also investigate how changes in these CNS processes contribute to water retention associated with heart or liver disease and chronic diseases such as hypertension. Our goal is to achieve a better understanding of how the CNS contributes to health and diseases though its interactions with the cardiovascular system.