My research career has focused on the physiology and pathophysiology of the microcirculation, and in recent years, much of our work has been an investigation of the retinal microvascular complications of diabetes.  Our lab is currently funded with an NIH R01 entitled “Loss of the retinal glycocalyx in diabetes”, and we also have ongoing projects related to other retinal pathologies.

Techniques that we use in the laboratory include intravital microscopy, measurement of microvascular flow, computerized video analysis of microscope images, immunostaining of tissue sections, culturing of retinal microvascular endothelial cells, and western blotting.

Below is one of our images of the retinal vasculature (in green) and neuronal nuclei (in red).

Minsup Lee, Ph.D.

Randa Eshaq, Ph.D.

Wendy Leskova

Gaganpreet Kaur

Selected Publications

1. Leskova W, Warar R, Harris NR. Altered Retinal Hemodynamics and Mean Circulation Time in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2020 Aug 3;61(10):12. doi: 10.1167/iovs.61.10.12. PubMed PMID: 32761138; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7441299
2. Wright WS, Eshaq RS, Lee M, Kaur G, Harris NR. Retinal Physiology and Circulation: Effect of Diabetes. Compr Physiol. 2020 Jul 8;10(3):933-974. doi: 10.1002/cphy.c190021. PubMed PMID: 32941691.
3. Lee M, Leskova W, Eshaq RS, Harris NR. Acute changes in the retina and central retinal artery with methamphetamine. Exp Eye Res. 2020 Apr;193:107964. doi: 10.1016/j.exer.2020.107964. Epub 2020 Feb 7. PubMed PMID: 32044305; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7113125.
4. Eshaq RS, Harris NR. Hyperglycemia-induced ubiquitination and degradation of β-catenin with the loss of platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1 in retinal endothelial cells. Microcirculation. 2020 Feb;27(2):e12596. doi: 10.1111/micc.12596. Epub 2019 Nov 7. PubMed PMID: 31628816; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7032995.

Complete List of my Published Work in MyBibliography: LEARN MORE
 

Randa Eshaq has three recent first author publications in IOVS (2019), Microcirculation (2020) and Comprehensive Physiology (2020).
 
Ravdeep Warar, high school SMART student, won First Place in the Translational Medical Science Category of the state science fair (2020), and Second Place overall. She also received special awards from the US Metric Association and the US Naval/Marine Corp.
 
Ravdeep also was voted Most Likely to Win a Nobel Prize in her senior class (2020) at Caddo Magnet High in Shreveport.
 
Wendy Leskova, Research Associate, has two recent first author publications in Experimental Eye Research (2019) and IOVS (2020).
 
Minsup Lee, Post-Doctoral Fellow, has a recent first author publication in Experimental Eye Research (2020).
 
Gaganpreet Kaur, Graduate Student, won a 2020 NAVBO Vascular Biology conference poster award.

Randa Eshaq, Post-Doctoral Fellow, was awarded the 2019 Allied Health Teaching Award. The award is presented annually to one student and one faculty/post-doc course instructor.

Post-doctoral Fellows

While we are not currently recruiting Post-doctoral Fellows, quality candidates will always be considered.  To enquire about opportunities, contact Dr. Harris at nharr6@lsuhsc.edu.

Graduate Students

Graduate students interested in conducting research in the Harris lab should review the current laboratory research directions and contact Dr. Harris at nharr6@lsuhsc.edu.

Undergraduate Research Assistants

We are not currently hiring any additional undergraduates. However, positions can become available during the summer.

Medical Students, Residents, and Fellows

The Harris laboratory has a number of research projects available for any Medical Students, Residents, and Fellows. Those interested should contact Dr. Harris at nharr6@lsuhsc.edu for more information.