Current Positions

Associate Professor, Department of Physiology and Pathophysiology

Education

BSc (Biology), University of the Fraser Valley.
PhD (Experimental Medicine), University of British Columbia.
Post-doctoral Fellow (Physiology and Pathophysiology), University of Manitoba.

Research Focus

Chronic respiratory diseases, including asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), are significant health burdens in Canadians. Research shows that environmental exposures in early life are important in the development of these conditions. Although treatments exist to manage the symptoms, individuals with chronic respiratory disease still suffer significant morbidity and mortality. Through an understanding of how the early life environment influences risk for chronic disease, it may be possible to develop strategies and treatments that reduce risk and prevent disease development.
Dr. Pascoe’s team uses animal and cell models, and human clinical samples to address two research focuses:
1) How lipid mediators regulate normal lung cellular physiology. These signaling molecules, known as oxylipins, are known to regulate a diverse set of cellular functions but their role in regulating lung physiology remains largely unexplored. Dr. Pascoe’s team uses cell based model of airway cells (airway smooth muscle, airway fibroblasts, and airway epithelium) to explore both the types of oxylipins produced by cells and how these oxylipins regulate cellular physiology. By understanding what cellular processes these oxylipins influence in the lung, we can begin to understand the importance of these understudied molecules in the respiratory system.
2) How the environment influences the pathophysiology and developmental origins of chronic respiratory disease. The environment plays a key role in determining risk for and development of chronic respiratory diseases. Exposure to cigarette smoke, maternal diabetes, and e-cigarettes are associated with deficits in lung health. Dr. Pascoe’s team uses animal and cell based models, along with clinical samples, to study how the environment changes cell function and lung health. His team measures changes in cellular transcriptomes, lipidomes, and proteomes to and determine whether these changes relate to changes in lung function. His team focuses on whether exposure maternal smoking, maternal diabetes, or e-cigarettes promote future lung disease.

Research Interests

- Asthma
- COPD
- Airway Smooth Muscle
- In utero exposure
- Oxylipins
- Amniotic Fluid
- Cigarette smoke
- Maternal Diabetes
- E-cigarettes