Xutong Sun

Dr. Sun is currently Research Associate Professor in the Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work at Florida International University. She got her bachelor degree of Marine Biology and Ph.D. from Qingdao Ocean University, China. She completed postdoctoral training in molecular biology at Seto Marine Biological Laboratory of Kyoto University in Japan and Medical College of Georgia. Over the past 10 years, Dr. Sun has been involved in ongoing technique development to elucidate the mechanisms by which mitochondrial function is disrupted in the pulmonary endothelium in children born with congenital heart defects that result in increased pulmonary blood flow. She has worked closely with Dr. Black to develop the protocols necessary to measure mitochondrial bioenergetics using the Seahorse XF analyzer.

Research Interests

Dr. Sun recent focus is on mitochondrial functions on pulmonary endothelial cells metabolism in pulmonary hypertension, inflammasome activation and barrier disruption in acute lung injury.

Recent Publications

2024. Inflammatory lung injury is associated with endothelial cell mitochondrial fission and requires the nitration of RhoA and cytoskeletal remodeling.

2024. Mitochondrial hyperfusion induces metabolic remodeling in lung endothelial cells by modifying the activities of electron transport chain complexes I and III.

2024. Simvastatin restores pulmonary endothelial function in the setting of pulmonary over-circulation.

2023. Novel Relationship between Mitofusin 2-Mediated Mitochondrial Hyperfusion, Metabolic Remodeling, and Glycolysis in Pulmonary Arterial Endothelial Cells.

2023. Endothelin-1 acutely increases nitric oxide production via the calcineurin mediated dephosphorylation of Caveolin-1.

See more scholarly work at FIU Discovery