Principal Investigator
Steven J. Prior
Dr. Prior studies the cardiovascular and metabolic mechanisms underlying aging-associated diseases and skeletal muscle dysfunction in older adults. He completed an undergraduate degree from the University of Pittsburgh and a master's degree from Ohio State University. He earned a doctoral degree in Kinesiology from the University of Maryland and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
Graduate Students
David Kim
David is a Ph.D. whose research interests focus on molecular mechanisms to reduce functional and muscular impairments associated with aging-related muscle loss. His work supports the lab’s translational exercise interventions by examining how exercise influences molecular regulators of muscle health in older adults. In his free time, he enjoys playing basketball and volunteering at the animal shelter!
Evan Bota
Evan is a master’s student whose research focuses on skeletal muscle metabolism, with an emphasis on the interplay between lipid regulation and exercise training in metabolic health. His favorite aspect of research is using exercise as a physiological stimulus to better understand mechanisms contributing to various metabolic conditions. Before coming to UMD, Evan was a Division 1 swimmer and a research assistant at Towson University.
Undergraduate Students
Gianna Lynch
Giana is an Honors student in the Department of Kinesiology. She is studying the role of the E3 ubiquitin ligase UBR5 in regulating skeletal muscle mass in older adults with sarcopenia before and after a strength training intervention.
Dallas Sapp
Dallas is an undergraduate student in the Department of Kinesiology who is studying glucacon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptors in skeletal muscle of older adults.
Alumni
Catherine Springer-Sapp, Ph.D.
Dr. Springer-Sapp earned her Ph.D. in Kinesiology in 2024 studying mitochondrial quality control proteins in older adults with sarcopenia. She is currently an Assistant Professor at McDaniel College.
Jim Heilman, Ph.D.
Dr. Heilman earned a Ph.D. in Kinesiology in 2024 with research focusing on circulating extracellular vesicle (EV) number and function in response to acute and chronic exercise, and how EVs relate to vascular function in response to exercise and inflammatory stimuli. He is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine.
Bill Evans, Ph.D.
Dr. Evans earned a Ph.D. in Kinesiology in 2023 studying the effects of acute and chronic systemic inflammation on macrophage infiltration of skeletal muscle and its effects on skeletal muscle capillarization, fiber size, and function in models of heart failure and peripheral arterial disease. He is currently an Assistant Professor at Elon University.