Laboratory Facilities

 

The three laboratories at SDSU are well equipped and are heavily used by students and faculty for both teaching and research activities.  The Fred W. Kasch Exercise Physiology Lab (ENS 255) is the primary lab used for teaching, although many of the research studies are conducted in here as well.  One of the most significant features of the Kasch Lab is the environmental chamber.  Students and faculty use the chamber to conduct a range of studies including the effects of heat on muscle desaturation kinetics, sweat rates and sweat gland adaptation, and cardiovascular responses. The Kasch lab also has a hydrostatic (underwater) weighing tank and a biochemistry room that includes a gamma counter, flame photometer, and spectrometer.  In addition, there is a small library that contains past issues of Journal of Applied Physiology and Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise.

 

Another lab (ENS 102) is reserved primarily for research activities.  The Nichols lab is located about 10 minutes from campus and houses the DXA scanner.  There are six metabolic measurement carts across the three labs and two portable wireless systems.  Also in the labs are five lactate analyzers, three electrically-braked Lode cycle ergometers, two oxygen scrubbers for investigations of exercise at altitude, six treadmills (one with two force plates), cardiac output impedance analyzer and two non-infrared tissue spectrometers to measure oxygen saturation.  In addition, student and faculty research is also conducted at off-campus sites including the U.S. Olympic Training Center (Chula Vista), Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Naval Training Center, and Naval Health Research Center. 

 

The third lab in the School is located 10-15 minutes from campus in Sky Park.  This lab is used for treadmill and cycle testing on a fee-for-service basis and is available to the community.  In addition, the lab is used for research and collaboration studies with investigators from the University of California, San Diego. Two DXA scanning machines for bone densitometry and body composition assessment are being used to study the female athlete triad, master athletes, and special populations, such as breast cancer survivors.