Personnel
Faculty
Donald Dengel, Ph.D.
Donald Dengel, Ph.D., is an
Associate Professor in the School of Kinesiology at the University of Minnesota and a
research scientist at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center. In addition to directing the Laboratory of Integrative Human Physiology, he serves as the Co-Director of the Body Composition and Human Performance Core and directs the Vascular Biology and Exercise Testing Laboratories at the University of Minnesota’s General Clinical Research Center.
He is also the acting Chair of the General Clinical Research Center’s Scientific Advisory Committee.
Dengel’s principle areas of research include insulin sensitivity, oxygen uptake kinetics and vascular structure and function in both children and adults. He is co-investigator on a series of grants funded by the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health exploring the development of cardiovascular disease and the metabolic syndrome in adolescent and adult cancer survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia and other cancers. Dengel, in collaboration with investigators from the Department of Veterans Affairs, is examining the kinetics of oxygen uptake in older adults with chronic heart failure and type 2 diabetes.
Staff
Joe Harmon, M.S.
Joe Harmon, M.S. is the laboratory manager for the Laboratory of
Integrative Human Physiology. In addition, he is in charge of the day
to day operations of the Human Performance Lab.
Brittney Nelson, M.A.
Brittney Nelson, M.A., is the Exercise Coordinator for the General Clinical Research Center (GCRC). Brittney received her Master's degree from Minnesota State University in Clinical Exercise Physiology. She is H/FI certified through ACSM and is a certified CPR instructor. Brittney is in charge of scheduling and conducting the exercise testing that is done in the lab.
Eric Williamson, M.Ed.
Eric Williamson, M.Ed. is a Research Associate within the Laboratory
of Integrative Human Physiology. In addition, Eric serves as the coordinator
for the Vascular Biology Laboratory, which is part of the Body Composition
and Human Performance Laboratory located in the University of Minnesota’s
General Clinical Research Center. His duties include assessing vascular
function and structure through high resolution ultrasound imaging of
the brachial and carotid arteries.
Students
Katy Hooke, B.S.
Catherine M. Hooke, B.S., is a Master’s student under the supervision
of Dr. Donald Dengel. Katy completed her Bachelor’s degree in Animal
Science from the University of New Hampshire in 2004, where she completed
an honors thesis examining the effect of a synthetic AMPK activator
on freshly isolated human adipocytes. Katy spent the last two years
as a post-baccalaureate fellow researching TGF-beta and breast cancer
metastasis at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, MD. Her current
research interests at the University of Minnesota are yet to be defined.
Adam Larson, B.S.
Adam J. Larson, B.S., is a Kinesiology M.A. student under the supervision of
Dr. Donald Dengel. He completed his B.S. in Kinesiology at the University of
Minnesota. His experiences include teaching physiology and health classes
through AmeriCorps and advising local United States Swimming committees on
athlete development. His current duties involve instructing University
exercise physiology and physical education courses. His research interests
include exercise metabolism and metabolic inflexibility.
Mike Nelson, M.S.
Michael T. Nelson, M.S. is a doctoral student under the
supervision of Dr. Donald Dengel. He completed his Bachelors of Arts
in Natural Science from the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth,
MN, followed by 2 years of post-graduate work and then graduate
work, completing a Masters of Science in Mechanical Engineering from
Michigan Technology University, Houghton, MI. His thesis entitled,
“Skin heating effects of millimeter-wave irradiation-thermal
modeling results” were published in the IEEE Transactions on
Microwave Therapy journal in 2000.
He is a Fitness Consultant in White Bear Lake, MN and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA CSCS). Other certifications include: Z Health R,I, and T Phase certification, and Russian Kettlebell Certification (RKC). He has also been employed part time at Boston Scientific for the past 7.5 years.
His current research interests at the University of Minnesota are respiratory exchange ratio variability in relation to metabolic inflexibility.
Andy Scott, B.A.
Andy Scott, B.A., is a master’s student under the supervision of Dr. Donald Dengel. He completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in Health & Physical Education at Augsburg College. He is currently a teaching assistant for Dr. George Biltz’s human physiology class. His current research interests at the University of Minnesota are yet to be defined.
Danielle Templeton, M.S.
Danielle L. Templeton, M.S., is a doctoral student under the
supervision of Dr. Donald Dengel. She received a Biology degree at
the University of Minnesota-Morris and completed her Masters’ in
Exercise Science at North Dakota State University. Her masters’
thesis concentrated on the physiological differences found in
college-aged females, who completed an 11-week training program of
either a concurrent or circuit routine. Her current field of
research is working with the cardiovascular system, focusing on
endothelial function and heart failure. Her dissertation project
will be examining the changes in endothelial function in heart
failure patients undergoing a left ventricular assist device
placement and/or a cardiac transplantation.
Revised January 2009