He received his doctoral training from the Department of Anatomy, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. He subsequently was recruited into the Department of Neurology at Emory University (2000-2007), and then into the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2007-2011). He is a basic and clinical scientist with extensive experience characterizing physiologic mechanisms facilitating life at high altitude and central nervous system function. His research interests focus upon (1) defining mechanisms conferring resilience to extreme environments, (2) characterizing brain dysfunction induced by low environmental oxygen, and (3) developing novel interventions to augment and protect central nervous system function.