Linda Pescatello, PhD, FACSM, CPD

Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor of Kinesiology
University of Connecticut
Kinesiology & Human Performance Laboratory
Neag School of Education
2095 Hillside Road, Unit 1110
Storrs, CT 06269-1110
Office: (860) 486-0008
Cell: (860) 798-3931
Fax: (860) 486-1123
Email: linda.pescatello@uconn.edu

Research Overview

Linda Pescatello, PhD, FACSM, has been funded by the American Heart Association for her work on exercise and hypertension; Pratt & Whitney for research relating to comprehensive worksite health promotion interventions; and the USDA for providing personal training physical activity interventions to adolescent, overweight, minority girls. As a member of the Exercise Science and Genetics Collaborative Research Group, she had been funded by Donaghue Medical Research Foundation for her research related to exercise genomics; the National Institutes of Health, Aging and Neurological Disorders and Stroke for a 5 year multi-center grant project entitled, “Functional Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms Associated with Human Size and Strength”; and the National Institutes of Health and National Heart Blood and Lung Institute for a 4 year multi-center grant, “The Effects of Statins on Skeletal Muscle Function”. She is currently funded by the National Institutes of Health and National Institutes on Drug Abuse for the 4 year project, “Healthy Activities for Prize Incentives” and the 5 year project, “Reinforcing Exercise in Cocaine Abusers “; the National Institutes of Health and National Institutes on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism for the 2 year project “Motivational Interventions for Exercise in Hazardous Drinking College Students”; the National Institutes of Health and the National Heart, Blood and Lung Institute for the 2 year project Contingency Management for Promoting Weight Loss in University Students; and the National Dairy Council for the 3 year project, “Investigation of Whey Protein Supplementation for Physiologic Enhancement to Resistance Training and Dietary Regimes in Young Adults”. On-going projects in her laboratory include the effects of cholesterol medications on exercise-induced muscle injury, genetic determinants of the blood pressure and muscle response to exercise and habitual physical activity, and physical activity and contingency management as interventions to curb hazardous drinking and overweight among college students and enhance treatment adherence among HIV positive substance abusers and Cocaine abusers. She has received awards for her work from the American College of Sports Medicine, the Association for Worksite Health Promotion, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the University of Connecticut School of Education Alumni Society, and School of Allied Health.

Education

PhD, Exercise Science, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 1986

MA, Exercise Science, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 1981

BS, Biological Sciences/Education; Minor, Chemistry, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 1977

Featured Publications

Augeri A, GJ Tsongalis, JL Van Heest, CM Maresh, PD Thompson and LS Pescatello. The Influence of the ENOS 786 T>C Polymorphism on the Blood Pressure and Nitric Oxide Response to Acute Dynamic Aerobic Exercise. Atherosclerosis Dec 16, 2008 Epub ahead of print 204: e28-34, 2009.

Kostek MA, MK Goodspeed, RL Seip, TJ Angelopoulos, PM Clarkson, PM Gordon, NM Moyna, PS Visich, RF Zoeller, S Bilbie, PD Thompson, J Devaney, EP Hoffman and LS Pescatello. Myostatin and follistatin polymorphisms and muscle phenotypes associations are ethnic specific. Med Sci Sports Exerc 41: 1063-1071, 2009.

Pescatello LS, BE Blanchard, GJ Tsongalis, CM Maresh and PD Thompson. The GNAS 393 T>C polymorphism and the blood pressure response immediately following aerobic exercise among men with elevated blood pressure. Vasc Dis Prev 6: 56-64, 2009.

Thompson W (ed), N Gordon and LS Pescatello (assoc. eds.) ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription (8th ed.). Baltimore, ML: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins 2009.
Pescatello LS, BE Blanchard, JL Van Heest, CM Maresh and PD Thompson. The metabolic syndrome and the immediate antihypertensive effects of aerobic exercise: a randomized control design. BMC Cardiovascular Disorders 2008; 8:12 doi:10.1186/1471-2261-8-12.

Pescatello LS, BE Blanchard, GJ Tsongalis, CM Maresh and PD Thompson. Αlpha adducin Gly460Trp polymorphism interacts with exercise intensity to alter the blood pressure response following endurance exercise. Clin Sci 113: 251-258, 2007. First published May 2, 2007 doi:10.1042/CS20060345.

Pescatello LS, D Turner, N Rodriguez, BE Blanchard, GJ Tsongalis, CM Maresh, V Duffy and PD Thompson. Dietary calcium intake and renin angiotensin system polymorphisms alter the blood pressure response to aerobic exercise: A randomized control design. January 4, 2007 Nutrition & Metabolism 4:1, 2007 doi:10.1186/1743-7075-4-1.

Uthurralt J, H Gordish-Dressman, M Bradbury, C Tesi-Rocha, J Devaney, B Harmon, E Reeves, C Brandoli, B Hansen, RL Seip, PD Thompson, TB Price, TJ Angelopoulos, PM Clarkson, NM Moyna, LS Pescatello, PS Visich, RF Zoeller, PM Gordon, and EP Hoffman. PPARα L162V underlies population variations in serum triglycerides and subcutaneous fat in young males. August 16, 2007 BMC Medical Genetics doi: 10.1186/1471-2350-8-55.

Blanchard BE, , GJ Tsongalis, MA Guidry, LA Labelle, M Poulin, AL Taylor, CM Maresh, J Devaney, PD Thompson and LS Pescatello. RAAS polymorphisms alter the acute blood pressure response to dynamic exercise. Eur J Appl Physiol 97: 26-33, 2006.

Marschke LC, G Allen, D Coble, SR Zellner, R Klein, B Auidi, D Murphy and LS Pescatello. Cardiovascular health status and health risk assessment method of preference among worksite employees. Journal of Primary Prevention 27: 67-79, 2006.

Pescatello LS, M Kostek, H Gordish-Dressman, PD Thompson, RL Seip, TB Price, TJ Angelopoulos, PM Clarkson, PM Gordon, NM Moyna, PS Visich, RF Zoeller, JM Devaney and EP Hoffman. ACE ID genotype and the muscle strength and size response to unilateral resistance training. Med Sci Sports Exerc 38: 1074-1081, 2006.

Thompson PD, GJ Tsongalis, JM Ordovas, RL Seip, C Bilbie, , M Miles, R Zoeller, P Visich, P Gordon, T Angelopoulos, LS Pescatello and N Moyna. Angiotensin-converting enzyme genotype and adherence to aerobic exercise training. Prev Cardiol 9: 21-24, 2006.

Gordon ES, HA Gordish-Dressman, J Devaney, P Clarkson, PD Thompson, P Gordon, LS Pescatello, MJ Hubal, EE Pistilli, G Gianetti, B Kesley and EP Hoffman. The effect of non disease genetic testing on self-concept, significant implications for subject perception. Eur J Hum Genetics 13: 1047-1054, 2005.

American College of Sports Medicine. Position Stand: Exercise and hypertension. LS Pescatello (co-chair), Franklin B (co-chair), , R Fagard, W Farquhar, GA Kelly and C Ray. Med Sci Sports Exerc 36: 533-553, 2004.

Pescatello LS, L Bairos, JL VanHeest, CM Maresh, NR Rodriguez, NM Moyna, C DiPasquale, V Collins, CL Meckes, L Krueger and PD Thompson. Postexercise hypotension differs between white and black women. Am Heart J 145: 364-370, 2003.


*Last Revised: 2013-05-10 12:47:59