Michael Schappe

Our laboratory studies how the nervous system protects vital organs by sensing internal threats to adapt physiology. Sensory information from visceral organs is continuously integrated by the brain to maintain homeostasis and mount rapid protective responses. Yet, the identity of key molecular and cellular mechanisms that enable these body–brain communication pathways remain poorly defined.

Our research seeks to uncover the molecular logic and circuit architecture that allow sensory pathways to detect physiological danger and coordinate protective reflexes. For instance, breathing is one of our most vital behaviors, and airway sensory pathways, primarily from the vagus nerve, evoke powerful reflexes that protect the lungs and shape internal sensations including breathlessness and anxiety. We strive to define how these systems operate in health and how their dysfunction contributes to disease. 

We use genetically-guided approaches including single-cell transcriptomics, intersectional mouse genetics, calcium imaging, optogenetics, and quantitative behavioral and physiological assays to link molecular identity and circuit function with organismal physiology. Our previous work identified a specific population of vagal sensory neurons, distinct from ‘lung stretch’ neurons, that sense closure of the airways by communicating with rare sentinel cells in the lung to evoke distressed breathing. These insights have broad implications for sensory biology, understanding interoception and anxiety, and neuro-immune signaling. 

We continue to chart the molecular architecture of internal sensations, body-brain communication, and vital functions of the cardiorespiratory system.  Discoveries from our research will provide a mechanistic foundation to illuminate new molecular targets and innovative strategies to treat sickness, acute, and chronic disease.