Thomas Longden

Thomas Longden is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physiology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He leads a research group focused on neurovascular interactions in health and disease, with particular emphasis on understanding how blood flows through the brain under normal conditions and how this process is disrupted in diseases like Alzheimer's.

Dr. Longden received his B.Sc (Hons) and Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Manchester in the UK (2006 and 2010), followed by postdoctoral training at the University of Vermont under Professor Mark Nelson (2011-2015). He was promoted to Assistant Professor at Vermont in 2015 before joining the University of Maryland in February 2019.

His research focuses on the control of blood flow in the brain, particularly the mechanisms of neurovascular coupling where neuronal activity triggers changes in blood flow. His lab has made significant discoveries including identifying the brain's capillary network as a 'sensory web' that translates neural activity into vasodilatory electrical signals, and demonstrating how pericytes function as metabolic sentinels that control blood flow through KATP channel-dependent mechanisms.

Analysis of Dr. Longden's recent publications reveals a strong focus on pericyte function in neurovascular coupling, electrical signaling in the capillary network, and how these mechanisms are disrupted in Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. His work increasingly incorporates advanced imaging techniques, computational approaches, and innovative tools to study vascular plasticity.

• 2023: Fellow of the American Physiological Society Cardiovascular Section
• 2020: NIH Director's New Innovator Award
• 2017: American Heart Association Scientist Development Grant
• Multiple travel awards and postdoctoral fellowships

Dr. Longden currently mentors several graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in the Longden Lab, which is supported by multiple NIH grants including an NINDS New Innovator Award and an NIA R01 grant. His lab develops and employs advanced techniques including multiphoton microscopy, electrophysiology, optogenetics, and molecular biology to study vascular cells in the brain. The lab is particularly focused on understanding vascular signaling plasticity and how pericytes control brain blood flow in health and Alzheimer's disease.