Danita Eatman, Ph.D.
Research Instructor, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology
Morehouse School of Medicine
B.S., Morris Brown College
Ph.D., Wright State University
deatman@msm.edu
Office Phone: (404) 752-1174
Department: (404) 752-1710
Lab: (404) 752-1163
Fax: (404) 752-1164

Research Interests

The inability of some astronauts to stand following reentry from space has been a major concern and a significant focus of research.  Females have demonstrated greater incidence of syncopal episodes during standing after experiencing microgravity influences.  Future missions, including long-duration missions on the space station and eventually to Mars, are expected to include both males and females.  Understanding the gender-specific differences in cardiovascular responses among astronauts will become important for long-duration International Space Station and exploratory missions.  Using the Hindlimb Unloaded (HU) rat model, we are able to elicit a number of cardiovascular adaptations that occur during exposure to microgravity in humans.  Recent findings in our laboratory indicate that increased production and/or release of endothelium-derived relaxing factors (i.e. nitric oxide and prostacyclin) may contribute to post-suspension hypotension in rats and orthostatic hypotension in astronauts. Inhibition of prostanoid synthesis or nitric oxide synthase attenuated the post-suspension hypotension observed in these animals.

Relevant Publications

Ganafa, A.A., Walton, M., Eatman, D., Abukhalaf, I.A, Bayorh M.A.  Amlodipine attenuates oxidative-stress-induced hypertension.  American Journal of Hypertension 17:743-748, 2004.

Eatman, D., Walton, M., Socci, R.R., Emmett, N., Bayorh, M.A.  NOSII inhibition attenuates post-suspension hypotension in Sprague-Dawley rats.  Clinical and Experimental Hypertension, 25:11-24, 2003.

Eatman, D., Listrop, R.A., Beasley, A.S., Socci, R.R., Abukhalaf, I., Bayorh, M.A.  Influences of prostanoids and nitric oxide on post-suspension hypotension in female Sprague-Dawley rats.    Prostaglandins, Leukotrienes and Essential Fatty Acids 68:197-205, 2003.

Bayorh, M.A., Ganafa, A.A., Socci, R.R., Eatman, D., Silvestrov, N., Abukhalaf, I.A.  Effect of Losartan on oxidative stress-induced Hypertension. American Journal of Hypertension 16:387-392, 2003.

Bayorh, M.A., Thierry-Palmer, M., Ganafa, A., Walton, M., Emmett, N., Eatman, D.   Hindlimb unloading is associated with increased nitric oxide and reduced sympathetic activity. Journal of Gravitational Physiology (submitted).

Keywords

Hindlimb unloading, Nitric oxide, Prostacyclin, Orthostatic hypotension