Dr. Lahm is a physician scientist in the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine with a focus on the study of sexual dimorphisms in lung vascular remodeling and right ventricular (RV) adaptation in pulmonary hypertension (PH). The overall goal of his research is to identify novel therapeutic interventions for PH-induced RV and lung vascular dysfunction. In particular, he is interested in gender differences in PH and the role of sex hormones in PH and RV failure. His laboratory is studying mechanisms of how sex hormones such as 17β-estradiol affect lung and RV endothelial cell homeostasis as well as cardiomyocyte function during PH and RV failure development. A specific focus is on deciphering how estrogen receptor alpha promotes resilience to maladaptive RV remodeling by regulating angiogenesis, contractile signaling and inflammatory processes.

Other areas of interest in the Lahm lab include studies of hypoxia-induced lung vascular and RV remodeling in the perinatal period and throughout the lifespan, neurohormonal signaling in the RV, exercise effects on RV function, and novel PH phenotypes in the veteran population. The Lahm lab recently expanded its studies of sexually dimorphic lung diseases to study androgen signaling in asthma and to identify mechanisms of how androgens modulate airway epithelial cell function.

Dr. Lahm’s clinical interest is in PH, RV failure and lymphangioleiomyomatosis - conditions that exhibit significant gender biases and that disproportionally affect women. He is also passionate about critical care medicine and provides care to critically ill patients in the intensive care unit.