James W. HicksProfessor, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology |
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Research Interests |
Comparative Physiology of Circulation and Gas Exchange | |
| URL | Lab Home Page | |
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Research Abstract |
As a broadly trained, integrative physiologist, my research efforts are divided among five areas; understanding the mechanism(s), regulation and functional significance of intracardiac shunting in "lower vertebrates", investigating the factors that determine and regulate the cardiopulmonary response to elevated metabolism in "lower vertebrates", investigating the ontogeny of cardiovascular regulation, studying acclimatization to hypoxia and investigating the effects of gravity on the vertebrate cardiovascular system. My research focuses on vertebrates and spans several groups, including amphibians, reptiles and humans. My laboratory provides a unique evolutionary perspective into circulation and respiration and seeks to discover not only differences among organisms, but the unifying principles shared by diverse organisms. I believe that it is important to articulate the power of comparative and evolutionary physiology and to point out that these approaches are not mutually exclusive to biomedical sciences. Comparative physiology, at its most basic level, seeks to discover how animals work, and, most importantly, why animals work the way they do. These two seemingly straightforward questions have far-reaching implications and require a variety of investigative approaches. The comparative physiologist is challenged to determine the details of physiological mechanisms while simultaneously gaining insights into ultimate causation, i.e. the evolutionary or adaptive significance of a physiological process or trait. This manifold focus on proximal mechanism and ultimate causality requires that comparative and evolutionary physiologists bring to their investigations a diversity of analytical approaches and to effectively integrate molecular, cellular, organismal, morphological, biomechanical, biophysical, ecological and evolutionary information. |
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| Publications | Axelsson M, Dang Q, Pitsillides K, Munns S, Hicks J, Kassab GS. A novel, fully implantable, multichannel biotelemetry system for measurement of blood flow, pressure, ECG, and temperature. J Appl Physiol. 2007 Mar;102(3):1220-8. | |
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Giuseppe Astarita, Bryan C. Rourke, Johnnie B. Andersen, Jin Fu, Janet H. Kim, Albert F. Bennett, James W. Hicks, and Daniele Piomelli Postprandial increase of oleoylethanolamide mobilization in small intestine of the Burmese python (Python molurus) Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 290: R1407-R1412, 2006. |
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| L.K. Hartzler, , S.L. Munns, A.F. Bennett and J.W. Hicks (2006) Recovery from an activity-induced metabolic acidosis in the American alligator, Alligator mississippiensis Comp Biochem and Physiol - Part A: Mol & Int Physiol Volume 143, Issue 3 , Pages 368-374 | ||
| Hartzler, L. K., Munns, S. L., Bennett, A. F., Hicks, J. W. (2006)Metabolic and blood gas dependence on digestive state in the Savannah monitor lizard Varanus exanthematicus: an assessment of the alkaline tide J Exp Biol 209: 1052-1057. | ||
| Britt, E. J., Hicks, J. W., Bennett, A. F. (2006) The energetic consequences of dietary specialization in populations of the garter snake, Thamnophis elegans J Exp Biol 209: 3164-3169 | ||
| Hicks, JW and Munis, JR (2005) The siphon controversy counterpoint: the brain need not be "baffling" Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 289: R629-R632 | ||
| Andersen, JB, Rourke, B, Caiozzo, V, Bennett, AF and Hicks, JW (2005) Postprandial cardiac hypertrophy in pythons, Nature, 434, 37 - 38 (03 Mar 2005) | ||
| Wang, T., Andersen, J. B. and Hicks, J. W. (2005). Effects of digestion on the respiratory and cardiovascular physiology of amphibians and reptiles. In Physiological and Ecological Adaptations to Feeding in Vertebrates (ed. J. M. Starck and T. Wang), pp. 279-303. Enfield, NH, USA: Science?Publishers | ||
| Munns, SL., Hartzler, LK, Bennett, AF, and Hicks, JW (2005)Terrestrial locomotion does not constrain venous return in the American alligator, Alligator mississippiensis J. Exp. Biol. 2005 208: 3331-3339. | ||
| McCue, M. D., A. F. Bennett, and J. W. Hicks.(2005). The effect of meal composition on specific dynamic action in Burmese Pythons (Python molurus) . Physiol. Biochem. Zool. 78: 182-192. | ||
| Munns, SL, Hartzler, LK, Bennett, AF, Hicks, JW (2004) Elevated intra-abdominal pressure limits venous return during exercise in Varanus exanthematicus J Exp Biol 207, 4111-4120 | ||
| Hicks, JW and Munis, JR (2005) The siphon controversy counterpoint: the brain need not be "baffling" Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 289: R629-R632 | ||
| Hicks JW, Wang T.(2004) Hypometabolism in reptiles: behavioural and physiological mechanisms that reduce aerobic demands.Respir Physiol Neurobiol. Aug 12;141(3):261-71: | ||
| Crossley DA 2nd, Hicks JW, Altimiras J. (2003) Ontogeny of baroreflex control in the American alligator Alligator mississippiensis. J. Exp. Biol., Aug;206(Pt 16):2895-902 | ||
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Owerkowicz, T., Farmer, C., Hicks, J.W. and Branierd, B. (1999) Gular pumping contributes to lung ventilation in monitor lizards. Science V284 N5420 1661- 1663. |
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Professional Societies |
Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology American Physiological Society Society for Experimental Biology |
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| Other Experience |
Chair Comparative and Evolutionary Physiology Section, American Physiological Society 2004—2007 |
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Editor-in-Chief Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 2001—pres |
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Councillor American Physiological Society 2006—2009 |
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| Graduate Programs |
Comparative Physiology |
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| Link to this profile | http://www.faculty.uci.edu/profile.cfm?faculty_id=2158 | |
| Last updated | 05/31/2009 | |