Ongoing studies in Dr. Jackson鈥檚 laboratory seek to understand how arterioles in the microcirculation sense their environment and how changes in the environment alter the contractile function of vascular muscle cells in the walls of these microvessels to lead to changes in blood flow and blood pressure. Using techniques such as intravital videomicroscopy, single cell contraction, immunocytochemistry, single cell quantitative RT-PCR, fluorescence microscopy, calcium imaging, patch clamp recording, pressure myography and conventional microelectrode methods, the Jackson lab seeks to understand the role played by smooth muscle and endothelial cell ion channels in the regulation of calcium signaling and vascular smooth muscle tone in arterioles related to the local regulation of blood flow in the microcirculation, and the impact of aging and disease states, such as hypertension and obesity, on these processes.