Leah R Reznikov

Leah R Reznikov,

Associate Professor

Department: Department of Physiological Sciences
Business Phone: (352) 294-4059
Business Email: leahreznikov@ufl.edu

About Leah R Reznikov

Lab Website: https://leahreznikov.wixsite.com/reznikovlab

Additional Positions:
BREATHE T32 Curriculum Coordinator
2023 – · University of Florida
Scientific Advisor
2017 – · Cure Sanfilippo Foundation

Accomplishments

Giles F. Filley Memorial Award for Excellence in Respiratory Physiology and Medicine
2022 · American Physiological Society
Teacher of Year Award (Class of 2024)
2022 · Univeristy of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine
Zoetis Award for Veterinary Research Excellence
2021 · Zoetis
Career Accelerator Award
2020 · McKnight Brain Institute at the University of Florida
Excellence Award for Assistant Professors
2020 · University of Florida
Teacher of the Year Award (Class of 2021)
2019 · University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine
Pew Scholarship Program Candidate Representative
2018 · University of Florida
Distinguished Doctorate Alumni Award
2017 · University of South Carolina School of Medicine
Matching Funds Award Dovetail Genomics
2017 · Dovetail Genomics
STEM Mentor
2017 · New York Academy of Sciences
Health Sciences Research Week Cover Art Winner
2014 · University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine
Interdisciplinary Research Poster Session Best Poster Award
2014 · University of Iowa
K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Grant Recipient
2014 · NIH
Health Sciences Research Week Outstanding Poster Award in Postdoctoral Fellow and Staff Category
2013 · University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine
Interdisciplinary Research Poster Session Women in Science and Engineering Award
2013 · University of Iowa
Health Sciences Research Week Outstanding Poster Award in Postdoctoral Fellow and Staff Category
2012 · University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine
NIH T32 Institutional NRSA Postdoctoral Fellowship Recipient, Cardiovascular Center, Internal Medicine
2010 · University of Iowa
Chair’s Fund Recipient
2007 · Amygdala in Health & Disease Gordon Conference
Young Investigator Travel Award
2007 · International Society of Psychoneuroendocrinology
Graduate Student Travel Award
2006 · Society for Neuroscience
Research Assistantship
2004 · University of South Carolina School of Medicine
Academic Recognition Scholarship
1998-2002 · Iowa State University

Teaching Profile

Courses Taught
2016-2024
VEM5171 Vet Pharmacology
2019
GMS7794 Neuroscience Seminar
2018
VME7979 Advanced Research
2018,2023-2024
VME6932 Seminar in Physiological Sciences
2020-2022,2024
BMS3521 Human Physiology in Translation
2023
GMS7979 Advanced Research
2023-2024
VME6905 Problems in Veterinary Medical Sciences

Research Profile

The research interests of my lab are centered on the interface of the nervous system and the airway. Using multidisciplinary approaches, we aim to answer three big picture questions: 1) Is dysfunction of the nervous system sufficient to induce airway disease? 2) What are the neural substrates that detect airway insults? 3) Can targeting the nervous system prevent airway disease?

To answer these questions, we use models of asthma and cystic fibrosis, with a special emphasis on early stage life. We perform in vitro and in vivo studies in parallel, and utilize numerous techniques ranging from basic molecular biology to microscopy to ion transport studies to whole animal physiology. We are keenly interested in the communication of the nervous system with the airway, and the processes governing transmission of that information to target tissues (i.e. epithelia, smooth muscle, submucosal glands). The goal of all our efforts is to improve human health and discover new mechanisms of airway disease.

Areas of Interest
  • Integrative neuroscience
Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID)

0000-0002-4074-9070

Publications

2023
Club cell CREB regulates the goblet cell transcriptional network and pro-mucin effects of IL-1B.
Frontiers in physiology. 14 [DOI] 10.3389/fphys.2023.1323865. [PMID] 38173934.
2023
Editorial: Multiscale Anatomy and Biophysics of the Autonomic Nervous System: Implications for Neuromodulation
Frontiers in Neuroscience. Volume 17 [DOI] doi: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1289177.
2023
Progressive tauopathy disrupts breathing stability and chemoreflexes during presumptive sleep in mice
Frontiers in Physiology. 14 [DOI] 10.3389/fphys.2023.1272980. [PMID] 37811498.
2022
From apples to airways – why gravity matters
Experimental Physiology. 107(7):745-746 [DOI] 10.1113/ep089333.
2022
Identification of cholinergic cells with chemosensory traits in the porcine uterus
Cell and Tissue Research. 388(1):33-47 [DOI] 10.1007/s00441-022-03585-1.
2022
Influence of SARS-CoV-2 on airway mucus production: A review and proposed model
Veterinary Pathology. 59(4):578-585 [DOI] 10.1177/03009858211058837.
2022
Lung Fibrosis Finds an Unsung Hero in Neuropeptide Y
American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology. 67(6):613-614 [DOI] 10.1165/rcmb.2022-0375ed.
2021
Early Lung Disease Exhibits Bacteria-Dependent and -Independent Abnormalities in Cystic Fibrosis Pigs
American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. 204(6):692-702 [DOI] 10.1164/rccm.202102-0451oc.
2021
Identification of antiviral antihistamines for COVID-19 repurposing
Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 538:173-179 [DOI] 10.1016/j.bbrc.2020.11.095. [PMID] 33309272.
2021
Overexpression of Substance P in pig airways increases MUC5AC through an NF‐kβ pathway
Physiological Reports. 9(3) [DOI] 10.14814/phy2.14749. [PMID] 33580593.
2021
PKCε sensing in the carotid body – a new target for asthma?
The Journal of Physiology. 599(4):1007-1008 [DOI] 10.1113/jp281080.
2021
The Underlying Mechanism of Modulation of Transient Receptor Potential Melastatin 3 by protons.
Frontiers in pharmacology. 12 [DOI] 10.3389/fphar.2021.632711. [PMID] 33603674.
2021
To alkalinize or acidify, that is the question.
Biophysical journal. 120(24):5436-5437 [DOI] 10.1016/j.bpj.2021.11.012. [PMID] 34798062.
2020
Acid exposure disrupts mucus secretion and impairs mucociliary transport in neonatal piglet airways
American Journal of Physiology-Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology. 318(5):L873-L887 [DOI] 10.1152/ajplung.00025.2020. [PMID] 32160007.
2020
Airway cholinergic history modifies mucus secretion properties to subsequent cholinergic challenge in diminished chloride and bicarbonate conditions
Experimental Physiology. 105(10):1673-1683 [DOI] 10.1113/ep088900.
2020
Long-term culturing of porcine nodose ganglia
Journal of Neuroscience Methods. 332 [DOI] 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2019.108546. [PMID] 31821820.
2019
Attenuated Amiloride-Sensitive Current and Augmented Calcium-Activated Chloride Current in Marsh Rice Rat (Oryzomys palustris) Airways
iScience. 19:737-748 [DOI] 10.1016/j.isci.2019.08.011. [PMID] 31491720.
2019
Comparison of Isoflurane, Ketamine-Dexmedetomidine, and Ketamine-Xylazine for General Anesthesia during Oral Procedures in Rice Rats (Oryzomys palustris).
Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science : JAALAS. 58(1):40-49 [DOI] 10.30802/AALAS-JAALAS-18-000032. [PMID] 30572978.
2019
Impaired butyrate absorption in the proximal colon, low serum butyrate and diminished central effects of butyrate on blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats.
Acta physiologica (Oxford, England). 226(2) [DOI] 10.1111/apha.13256. [PMID] 30656835.
2019
Sex-specific airway hyperreactivity and sex-specific transcriptome remodeling in neonatal piglets challenged with intra-airway acid
American Journal of Physiology-Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology. 316(1):L131-L143 [DOI] 10.1152/ajplung.00417.2018. [PMID] 30407862.
2019
Strategies for measuring airway mucus and mucins
Respiratory Research. 20(1) [DOI] 10.1186/s12931-019-1239-z. [PMID] 31752894.
2018
Glycogen depletion can increase the specificity of mucin detection in airway tissues.
BMC research notes. 11(1) [DOI] 10.1186/s13104-018-3855-y. [PMID] 30359291.
2018
Interest in and Awareness of French President Emmanuel Macron’s “Make our Planet Great Again” Initiative
Social Sciences. 7(7) [DOI] https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci7070102.
2018
Neuropeptides in asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and cystic fibrosis
Respiratory Research. 19(1) [DOI] 10.1186/s12931-018-0846-4. [PMID] 30081920.
2018
Solitary Cholinergic Stimulation Induces Airway Hyperreactivity and Transcription of Distinct Pro-inflammatory Pathways
Lung. 196(2):219-229 [DOI] 10.1007/s00408-018-0091-0. [PMID] 29380034.
2018
The vagal ganglia transcriptome identifies candidate therapeutics for airway hyperreactivity.
American journal of physiology. Lung cellular and molecular physiology. 315(2):L133-L148 [DOI] 10.1152/ajplung.00557.2017. [PMID] 29631359.
2017
Cystic Fibrosis and the Nervous System.
Chest. 151(5):1147-1155 [DOI] 10.1016/j.chest.2016.11.009. [PMID] 27876591.
2017
Simple and reproducible approaches for the collection of select porcine ganglia.
Journal of neuroscience methods. 289:93-98 [DOI] 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2017.06.005. [PMID] 28602889.
2016
Acid-Sensing Ion Channel 1a Contributes to Airway Hyperreactivity in Mice.
PloS one. 11(11) [DOI] 10.1371/journal.pone.0166089. [PMID] 27820848.
2016
Airway acidification initiates host defense abnormalities in cystic fibrosis mice.
Science (New York, N.Y.). 351(6272):503-7 [DOI] 10.1126/science.aad5589. [PMID] 26823428.
2016
Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator in Sarcoplasmic Reticulum of Airway Smooth Muscle. Implications for Airway Contractility.
American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine. 193(4):417-26 [DOI] 10.1164/rccm.201508-1562OC. [PMID] 26488271.
2016
Immunohistochemical Detection of Markers for Translational Studies of Lung Disease in Pigs and Humans.
Toxicologic pathology. 44(3):434-41 [DOI] 10.1177/0192623315609691. [PMID] 26511846.
2016
Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Causes Multiple Organ Damage and Lethal Disease in Mice Transgenic for Human Dipeptidyl Peptidase 4.
The Journal of infectious diseases. 213(5):712-22 [DOI] 10.1093/infdis/jiv499. [PMID] 26486634.
2015
Glycaemic regulation and insulin secretion are abnormal in cystic fibrosis pigs despite sparing of islet cell mass.
Clinical science (London, England : 1979). 128(2):131-42 [DOI] 10.1042/CS20140059. [PMID] 25142104.
2014
Antibacterial properties of the CFTR potentiator ivacaftor.
Journal of cystic fibrosis : official journal of the European Cystic Fibrosis Society. 13(5):515-9 [DOI] 10.1016/j.jcf.2014.02.004. [PMID] 24618508.
2014
Expression and activity of acid-sensing ion channels in the mouse anterior pituitary.
PloS one. 9(12) [DOI] 10.1371/journal.pone.0115310. [PMID] 25506946.
2014
Localization and behaviors in null mice suggest that ASIC1 and ASIC2 modulate responses to aversive stimuli.
Genes, brain, and behavior. 13(2):179-94 [DOI] 10.1111/gbb.12108. [PMID] 24256442.
2014
pH modulates the activity and synergism of the airway surface liquid antimicrobials β-defensin-3 and LL-37.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 111(52):18703-8 [DOI] 10.1073/pnas.1422091112. [PMID] 25512526.
2014
Protons are a neurotransmitter that regulates synaptic plasticity in the lateral amygdala.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 111(24):8961-6 [DOI] 10.1073/pnas.1407018111. [PMID] 24889629.
2013
CFTR-deficient pigs display peripheral nervous system defects at birth.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 110(8):3083-8 [DOI] 10.1073/pnas.1222729110. [PMID] 23382208.
2013
Intestinal CFTR expression alleviates meconium ileus in cystic fibrosis pigs.
The Journal of clinical investigation. 123(6):2685-93 [DOI] 10.1172/JCI68867. [PMID] 23676501.
2013
Tianeptine modulates amygdalar glutamate neurochemistry and synaptic proteins in rats subjected to repeated stress.
Experimental neurology. 241:184-93 [DOI] 10.1016/j.expneurol.2012.12.005. [PMID] 23262120.
2012
Sinus hypoplasia precedes sinus infection in a porcine model of cystic fibrosis.
The Laryngoscope. 122(9):1898-905 [DOI] 10.1002/lary.23392. [PMID] 22711071.
2012
The antidepressant agomelatine inhibits stress-mediated changes in amino acid efflux in the rat hippocampus and amygdala.
Brain research. 1466:91-8 [DOI] 10.1016/j.brainres.2012.05.039. [PMID] 22647752.
2011
The ΔF508 mutation causes CFTR misprocessing and cystic fibrosis-like disease in pigs.
Science translational medicine. 3(74) [DOI] 10.1126/scitranslmed.3001868. [PMID] 21411740.
2010
Loss of anion transport without increased sodium absorption characterizes newborn porcine cystic fibrosis airway epithelia.
Cell. 143(6):911-23 [DOI] 10.1016/j.cell.2010.11.029. [PMID] 21145458.
2010
Pigs and humans with cystic fibrosis have reduced insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) levels at birth.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 107(47):20571-5 [DOI] 10.1073/pnas.1015281107. [PMID] 21059918.
2009
ASIC2 subunits target acid-sensing ion channels to the synapse via an association with PSD-95.
The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience. 29(26):8438-46 [DOI] 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1284-09.2009. [PMID] 19571134.
2009
Caffeine elicits c-Fos expression in horizontal diagonal band cholinergic neurons.
Neuroreport. 20(18):1609-12 [DOI] 10.1097/WNR.0b013e3283329c3a. [PMID] 19864960.
2009
Effects of acute and repeated restraint stress on GABA efflux in the rat basolateral and central amygdala.
Brain research. 1256:61-8 [DOI] 10.1016/j.brainres.2008.12.022. [PMID] 19124010.
2008
Activation of phenotypically distinct neuronal subpopulations in the anterior subdivision of the rat basolateral amygdala following acute and repeated stress.
The Journal of comparative neurology. 508(3):458-72 [DOI] 10.1002/cne.21687. [PMID] 18335544.
2007
Acute stress-mediated increases in extracellular glutamate levels in the rat amygdala: differential effects of antidepressant treatment.
The European journal of neuroscience. 25(10):3109-14 [PMID] 17561824.
2007
Corticosterone impairs insulin-stimulated translocation of GLUT4 in the rat hippocampus.
Neuroendocrinology. 85(2):71-80 [PMID] 17426391.
2007
Lentivirus-mediated downregulation of hypothalamic insulin receptor expression.
Physiology & behavior. 92(4):691-701 [PMID] 17585961.
2007
Tianeptine increases brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression in the rat amygdala.
European journal of pharmacology. 565(1-3):68-75 [PMID] 17368617.
2006
Activation of orexin neurons by acute nicotine.
European journal of pharmacology. 535(1-3):172-6 [PMID] 16545369.
2005
Immunocytochemical analysis of synaptic proteins provides new insights into diabetes-mediated plasticity in the rat hippocampus.
Neuroscience. 136(2):477-86 [PMID] 16226381.
2005
Memory impairment in obese Zucker rats: an investigation of cognitive function in an animal model of insulin resistance and obesity.
Behavioral neuroscience. 119(5):1389-95 [PMID] 16300445.
2005
Stimulation of cortical acetylcholine release by orexin A.
Neuroscience. 130(2):541-7 [PMID] 15664710.

Grants

Apr 2023 ACTIVE
Mental Health Research Working Group
Role: Principal Investigator
Funding: CYSTIC FIBROSIS FOU
Aug 2022 ACTIVE
Breathing Research and Therapeutics (BREATHE)
Role: Co-Investigator
Funding: NATL INST OF HLTH NHLBI
Apr 2022 – Apr 2023
Giles F. Filley Memorial Award for Excellence in Respiratory Physiology and Medicine
Role: Principal Investigator
Funding: AMER PHYSIOLOGICAL SOC
Jul 2021 – Jun 2023
Seven tesla preclinical MRI/S scanner for structural, functional and molecular imaging
Role: Other
Funding: NATL INST OF HLTH OD
Jan 2021 ACTIVE
Central Nervous System Plasticity in Airway Disease
Role: Principal Investigator
Funding: NATL INST OF HLTH NHLBI
Nov 2020 – Oct 2022
BDNF Regulation of Mucin in Cystic Fibrosis
Role: Principal Investigator
Funding: CYSTIC FIBROSIS FOU
Apr 2020 – Jun 2023
Epithelial CREB-BDNF Regulation of Mucin in Cystic Fibrosis
Role: Principal Investigator
Funding: UF FOUNDATION
Nov 2019 – Oct 2021
Regulation of Inflammation and Mucus by CREB
Role: Principal Investigator
Funding: CYSTIC FIBROSIS FOU
Jul 2019 – Dec 2022
Transgenic Pigs with Red-Shifted Channelrhodopsin-Citrine Fusion Proteins
Role: Principal Investigator
Funding: NATL INST OF HLTH OD
Apr 2017 – Jun 2021
OoR CTSI Institutional Matching Support
Role: Project Manager
Funding: UF DIV OF SPONSORED RES MATCHING FUNDS
Sep 2016 – Jul 2022
Functional mapping of peripheral and central circuits for airway protection and breathing
Role: Co-Investigator
Funding: NATL INST OF HLTH OD
Sep 2016 – Dec 2020
Neural Pathogenesis of Airway Smooth Muscle Defects in Airway Disease
Role: Principal Investigator
Funding: NATL INST OF HLTH NHLBI

Education

Diversity and Inclusion Certificate
2022 · eCornell (Cornell University)
Certificate of Specialization in Leadership and Management
2021-2022 · Harvard Business School Online
Postdoctoral Scholar
2008-2016 · Lung Biology and Cystic Fibrosis Center, University of Iowa
Doctor of Philosophy Biomedical Sciences with focus in Neuroscience
2004-2008 · University of South Carolina School of Medicine
Regents Semester Study Abroad Program
2000 · University of Newcastle
Bachelor of Science in Biology
1998-2002 · Iowa State University

Contact Details

Phones:
Business:
(352) 294-4059
Emails:
Addresses:
Business Mailing:
PO Box 100144
1333 CENTER DR
GAINESVILLE FL 32610