Rigorous bioenergetic measurement, translational exercise science, and open methods — from single organelles to whole humans, in the Department of Kinesiology at the University of Virginia.
The laboratory works at two scales at once, organized around four commitments.
High-resolution respirometry (Oroboros O2k and NextGen O2k) in permeabilized fibers and isolated mitochondria, alongside non-invasive near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) of muscle oxidative capacity.
Randomized, longitudinal, and repeated-measures exercise studies in healthy adults, older adults, and people living with cardiometabolic diseases and related disorders.
We connect what we measure at the bench — coupling efficiency, substrate oxidation, electron transport system (ETS) capacity — to what we can change in a person, using translational approaches.
We mentor postdoctoral fellows, doctoral candidates, master's students, and undergraduates in reproducible bioenergetic methods, statistics, scientific writing, and grantsmanship.
How do mitochondria--the central energy hub of the cell--respond to exercise, aging, and cardiometabolic diseases?
How can we harness this knowledge to improve human health?
Our research spans skeletal muscle mitochondrial bioenergetics, in vivo NIRS-based assessments, in situ high-resolution respirometry assessments, immunoenergetics, and structured exercise interventions from cells to pre-clinical models, to humans including in:
Martone, Irving, Spielmann, Johannsen, Robinson, Chancellor, and Allaway ask how skeletal muscle responds to spaceflight stressors long after return to Earth. American Journal of Physiology — Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, 330(6):R582–R589.
Keller, Pennartz, Sprick, Hein, Irving, and colleagues review how vascular and skeletal muscle function shape brain health across aging and disease. American Journal of Physiology — Heart and Circulatory Physiology, 331(3):H957–H980.
The multi-site randomized trial comparing bariatric surgery to immediate total knee arthroplasty in severe obesity appears in Journal of Arthroplasty.
Cho, Spielmann, and Irving show that physiological lactate concentrations reshape T-cell phenotype and mitochondrial respiration. Physiological Reports.
Dr. Irving completed a visiting-scientist residency at Oroboros Instruments in Innsbruck, Austria, contributing to NextGen O2k method development.
Voluntary exercise restores skeletal-muscle oxidative capacity in a two-hit HFpEF model. JACC: Basic to Translational Science.
MS/PhD students in Kinesiology for the Fall 2027 cycle, plus rolling undergraduate research positions for 2026–27.