Isha Jain’s lab is interested in how the human body senses and responds to variations in oxygen levels. A number of diseases, including mitochondrial diseases, strokes, heart attacks, and respiratory diseases, reflect an imbalance between oxygen supply and oxygen demand.
Using a combination of systems biology, metabolism, and physiology, the Jain Lab aims to identify conditions that may benefit from “turning the oxygen dial.” A long-term goal of the team’s work is to understand the role of oxygen in aging and age-associated conditions. Using similar approaches, the lab is also investigating pathologies associated with variations in vitamin levels in the body.
Disease Areas
- Ischemia (Stroke, Heart Attack, Respiratory Disease)
- Neurodegenerative and Mitochondrial Diseases
- Inborn Errors of Metabolism
- Aging and Aging-Related Diseases
Areas of Expertise
- Oxygen Metabolism and Physiology
- Vitamin and Cofactor Metabolism
- Human Genetics
- Systems Biology
Lab Focus
- Understanding how the body senses and adapts to variations in oxygen levels, and studying what goes wrong when there is too little or too much oxygen in the body.
- Developing low or high oxygen exposure as a therapy for metabolic disorders.
- Understanding the genetic, nutritional, and metabolic causes of subclinical vitamin deficiencies, with the goal of developing personalized nutritional therapies.
Research Impact
Oxygen is both vital and toxic for life. It enables efficient energy production in the mitochondria. Yet, excess oxygen leads to oxidative damage of biomolecules.
One of Jain’s seminal contributions was the discovery that in a mouse model of mitochondrial disease, lowering inhaled oxygen levels could alleviate and even reverse neurodegeneration. This finding raises the possibility that therapies aimed at “turning the oxygen dial” may benefit other mitochondrial or metabolic disorders. This work has led to a Phase 1 clinical trial.
Jain’s findings also have implications for aging and longevity. Epidemiological studies show that people who live at higher altitude—where oxygen pressure is lower—are longer-lived than people who live at sea level. Understanding the molecular mechanisms that kick in at high altitude and their interaction with the aging process may uncover new ways to alleviate age-related conditions.
Jain’s work could also lead to therapies aimed at preventing or reversing the tissue damage associated with states of ischemia, such as strokes or heart failure, where much of the pathology is due to an insufficient supply of oxygen and nutrients.
