Division of Research

Rachel Perrin, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Scholar
Division of Research
Department of Surgery
UC Davis Medical Center

Research interests

The microvasculature allows nutrient and water exchange between the tissue and blood. This process is partly determined by the permeability of the vessel wall, which is composed of endothelial cells. My research centers on understanding how endothelial cells regulate permeability to water and proteins. In particular, I am interested in understanding why the endothelium becomes dysfunctional in diabetes mellitus, which gives rise to vascular complications such as retinopathy and neuropathy.

Selected publications

Glass CA, Perrin RM, Pocock TM, Bates DO. Transient osmotic absorption of fluid in microvessels exposed to low concentrations of dimethyl sulfoxide. Microcirculation 2006; 13(1):29-40.

Perrin RM, Konopatskaya O, Qiu Y, Harper SJ, Bates DO, Churchill AJ. Diabetic retinopathy is associated with a switch in splicing from anti- to pro-angiogenic isoforms of vascular endothelial growth factor. Diabetelogia 2005; 48:2422-2427.

Perrin RM, Glass CA, Bates DO, Harper SJ. Simultaneous measurement of hydraulic conductivity, oncotic reflection coefficient and compliance following treatment with high glucose Ringer solution in Rana mesenteric microvessels in vivo. 2005; J Physiol. 567P D5 (Abstr).

Woolard J, Wang W-Y, Bevan HS, Qui Y, Morbidelli L, Pritchard-Jones RO, Cui T-G, Sugiono M, Waine E, Perrin RM, Foster R, Digby-Bell J, Shields JD, Whittles CE, Mushens RE, Gillatt DA, Ziche M, Harper SJ, Bates DO. VEGF 165b, an inhibitory vascular endothelial growth factor splice variant: mechanism of action, in vivo effect on angiogenesis and endogenous protein expression. 2004; Cancer Research 64:7822-7835.