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Nanduri R. Prabhakar, Ph.D., D.Sc.
Harold Hines Jr. Professor of Medicine
Director, Center for Systems Biology
Director, Oxygen Sensing Department of Medicine
The revolutionary advances in cell and molecular biology as well as in genetic engineering in the past half-a-century have provided spectacular insights into our understanding of structure and function of biological systems at the molecular, cellular and sub-cellular levels. Shifting the research emphasis from organ (or from the whole body levels) to cellular and molecular physiology has resulted in a rapid decline in research on physiology at the systems level. While the reductionist approaches are powerful, they have brought into focus a major gap that has developed between our understanding of the molecular/cellular alterations and their impact at the organ and/or whole animal level. Integrative physiology, on the other hand, embraces the concepts of cell/molecular physiology, biochemistry and applies these concepts and experimental approaches to understand the function at the level of whole animal or organ. Realizing its importance, the University of Chicago established the Institute for Integrative Physiology (IIP) at the Biological Sciences Division as of October 2010. The main missions of IIP are to provide intellectual home for faculty members interested in various areas of Physiology to foster interactive research programs and oversee physiology education to medical, graduate and undergraduate students. These missions are supported by exceptional faculty in the IIP. We believe that IIP reaches far beyond the BSD to enhance the national and international visibility of Physiological research at the University of Chicago and provide training to the next generation of leaders in Physiology.
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