Assistant Professor
Department of Applied Science
McGlothlin-Street Hall, Room 303
The College of William and Mary
Williamsburg, VA 23187-8795
Office/Lab: 757-221-7808
Fax: 757-221-2050
cadeln@wm.edu,
curriculum vitae
Rhythms are ubiquitous in the brain and underlie many of its key functions. How does the brain produce rhythmic activity? We examine this issue in the rhythm-generating network for breathing in mammals. In humans and all mammals, the neural circuits for respiration must be properly configured at birth, and then unceasingly regulate breathing to satisfy physiological demands for the entire lifespan of the animal. Defects in the neural control of breathing cause major public health problems such as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome, apnea of prematurity, and sleep apnea. Breathing is unique from an experimental perspective because the respiratory motor rhythm can be retained in reduced preparations in vitro, which enable us to peform a wide array of neurophysiological experiments at molecular, cellular, and network levels in the context of fictive breathing behavior.