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Laboratory of Integrative Physiology

LaVoy Research Group

Research Agenda

My research investigates the effects of physical fitness and exercise on the immune system. My long-term goal is to use our knowledge of the immune system’s response to exercise and physical fitness to improve diseases and conditions associated with immune dysregulation, such as cancer.

My laboratory is interested in identifying mechanisms by which exercise may decrease cancer risk and improve immune responses in cancer. We have demonstrated that factors within post-exercise serum collected from healthy humans enhance immune cell cytotoxicity towards tumor cells. Relatedly, we showed that acute exercise mobilizes highly cytotoxic leukocyte subsets in healthy humans with enriched gene subsets associated with anti-tumor activity, such as cytotoxicity and migration/chemotaxis and that these cells retain enhanced anti-tumor function when adoptively transferred to NSG mice. We have demonstrated that exercise training intensity does not influence tumor or immune outcomes in a mouse model of pancreatic cancer, indicating that even low volumes of moderate intensity exercise can be considered for exercise interventions during cancer. More recently, we have shown improvements in physical function following a low-to moderate intensity physical activity intervention in older adults with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and that these improvements in physical function associated with both reduced fatigue and reduced activated/exhausted T-cells. Collectively, these works indicate that acute changes to immune cells that occur with each exercise session may sum to enhance cytotoxic immune cells and cancer-related outcomes over the course of an exercise training intervention, and that this effect may occur with exercise intensities and training programs that are attainable by cancer patients.

My laboratory has also worked towards explaining how exercise benefits immune dysregulation in aging and obesity. To understand if exercise can counter age-associated declines in immunity, we asked if brief resistance exercise performed immediately prior to vaccination improves influenza-specific immune outcomes in older adults. We have also shown differences in T-cell responses to aerobic and resistance exercise between sedentary and physically active individuals. Collectively, these works speak to the ability of single sessions of exercise to modulate immunity and thereby impact health in older adults. They also indicate that different exercise protocols will elicit different responses depending on participant experience with the exercise. Mechanistically, we have demonstrated that the acute effects of exercise on immune cell mobilization occur via beta2-adrenergic signaling, suggesting pathways that can be investigated for producing exercise-effects on immune cell recruitment in individuals unable to exercise. I am also interested in the effects of exercise training interventions. We have demonstrated that exercise training of obese mice improves vascular function, and that these improvements occur via reduction of NLRP3 inflammasome and by reduced oxidative stress.

My laboratory has also investigated factors that influence the immune response to exercise. We demonstrated that the unique ability of cytomegalovirus infection to influence exercise-induced lymphocyte mobilization occurs across different exercise intensities.  My research has also demonstrated the importance of factors in addition to infection history for understanding the response to exercise. I have shown that the effects of acute exercise on the function of reward pathways within the brain depend on participant familiarity with the mode of exercise, which has implications for the design of exercise interventions. Relatedly, we found that people who maintained or increased their physical activity during the first year of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic self-reported better mood and emotion. I have also reported that objectively measured sleep variables influence biomarkers of stress and inflammation in children. Collectively, these works add to our understanding of variables that can impact both exercise responses and the immune system, and thus inform the design of current research.

Current Projects

Some of the questions my research team is currently asking include:

  • Can a physical activity and diet intervention improve T cell function in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia?

  • Does exercise training improve Natural Killer cell adoptive transfer immunotherapy in osteosarcoma?

  • Can a combined aerobic and resistance training intervention improve immune function in young adult cancer survivors with cancer related fatigue?

  • Does cardiorespiratory fitness and body composition relate to T cell immunometabolism and function?

  • What are the impacts of moderate and vigorous exercise on T cell immunometabolism and function?

Recent Publications

LaVoy, E.C. (2024) Can exercise improve treatment for chronic lymphocytic leukemia? Brain Behavior and Immunity 120 (2024) 119-120 doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2024.05.036 PMID: 38815660

Che Young Lee, Gordon MJ, Markofski, M.M., LaVoy, E.C., Peterson, SK, Li, L., Fares, S., Baum, M., Pace, M., Walsh, D., Ferrajoli, A., Basen-Engquist, K. (2024) Optimization of mHealth behavioral interventions for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia: the HEALTH4CLL study. Journal of Cancer Survivorship doi:10.1007/s11764-024-01555-w PMID: 38472612

*Lee, J., Zarezadehmehrizi, A., LaVoy, E.C., Markofski, M.M., Park, Y. (2023) Exercise Training Improves Brachial Artery Endothelial Function, but Does Not Alter Inflammatory Biomarkers in Patients with Peripheral Artery Disease: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. J Cardiovasc Transl Res doi: 10.1007/s12265-023-10451-0 PMID: 37870688

*So, C.J, LaVoy, E., Harmouch, S, Alfano, C.A. (2023) Objective and subjective sleep patterns and biomarkers of stress among women with a history of sexual abuse in childhood. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy. doi: 10.1037/tra0001600 PMID: 37870777
*Hodgman, C.F. *Hunt, R.M., *Crane, J.C. *Elzayat, M.T., LaVoy, E.C. (2023) A Scoping Review on the Effects of Physical Exercise and Fitness on Peripheral Leukocyte Energy Metabolism. Exerc Immunol Rev. 29:54-87 PMID: 37358364

*Hunt, R., *Elzayat, M., Laughlin, M., Markofski, M.M., LaVoy, EC. (2023) Characterization of Transitional Memory CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell Mobilization During and After an Acute Bout of Exercise. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 5:1120454 doi: 10.3389/fspor.2023.1120454 PMID: 37139298

*Crane, J., Gordon, M., Basen-Engquist, K., Ferrajoli, A., Markofski, M.M., Young, C., Fares, S., Simpson, R., LaVoy, E.C. (2023) Relationships between T-lymphocytes and physical function in adults with chronic lymphocytic leukemia: results from the HEALTH4CLL pilot study. European Journal of Haematology 110(6):732-742. doi: 10.1111/ejh.13958 PMID 36946440

Savage, H., *Pareek, S., Lee, J., Ballaro, R., Minussi, D.C., Hayek, K., Sadullozoda, M., Lochmann, B., McQuade, J., LaVoy, E., Marmonti, E., Patel, H., Wang, G., Imanishi, M., Kotla, S., Abe, J., Schadler, K. (2023) Aerobic exercise alters the melanoma microenvironment and modulates ERK5 S496 phosphorylation. Cancer Immunology Research 11(9):1168-1183. doi: 10.1158/2326-6066.CIR-22-0465 PMID: 37307577

Batatinha, H., Diak, D., Niemiro, G., Baker, F., Smith, K., Zúñiga, T., Mylabathula, P., Seckeler, M., Lau, B., LaVoy, E.C., Gustafson, M., Katsanis, E., Simpson, R.J. (2023) Human lymphocytes mobilized with exercise have an anti-tumor transcriptomic profile and exert enhanced graft-versus-leukemia effects in xenogeneic mice. Front Immunol Apr 3:14:1067369. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1067369 PMID: 37077913

*Gupta P, *Hodgman CF, Alvarez-Florez C, Schadler KL, Markofski MM, O'Connor D.P., LaVoy, E.C. (2022) Comparison of three exercise interventions with and without gemcitabine treatment on pancreatic tumor growth in mice: No impact on tumor infiltrating lymphocytes. Front Physiol. Nov 21:13:1039988. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2022.1039988 PMID: 36479351

*Hodgman, C.F., LaVoy, E.C., Johnston, C.A., Obasi, E., Murillo R., Yan S., O’Connor D.P., McNeill, L. Reitzel, L.R., Hernandez, D.C. (2022) Measuring pro- and anti-inflammatory biomarkers among low-income Hispanic adults: a feasibility and pilot assessment. Health Behavior Research Vol. 5: No. 3. doi: 10.4148/2572-1836.1143

*Graff, R.M., Jennings, K., LaVoy, E.C., *Warren, V., Macdonald, B., Park, Y., Markofski, M. (2022) T-cell counts in response to acute cardiorespiratory or resistance exercise in physically active or physically inactive older adults: A randomized crossover study. Journal of Applied Physiology doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00301.2021

*Gupta, P., *Hodgman, C.F., Schadler, K.L., LaVoy, E.C. (2022) Effect of exercise on pancreatic cancer patients during treatment: A scoping review of the literature. Supportive Care in Cancer doi:10.1007/s00520-022-06925-7 PMID:35190894

(*) denotes students I mentored or co-mentored contributed to study design and data collection and analysis.

Complete List of Published Work in MyBibliography: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/14S_fVtYmVJkn/bibliography/public/