Amanda L. Zaleski, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellow

Department of Kinesiology

Research Overview

Dr. Zaleski is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Kinesiology at the University of Connecticut as well as an Exercise Physiologist in the Department of Preventive Cardiology at Hartford Hospital. Dr. Zaleski has served as Principal Investigator and/or Research Coordinator for numerous pharmaceutical and investigator-initiated clinical trials in a diverse set of clinical populations including: patients with cardiovascular disease or risk factors (i.e., lipid disorders, hypertension), offspring of adults with Alzheimer’s/dementia, firefighters, smokers, cancer survivors, obese women, pregnant women, pulmonary patients, and endurance athletes. She has been funded by the NASA CT Space Grant Consortium Graduate Fellowship and American College of Sports Medicine NASA Space Physiology Grant to examine the clinical utility of compression socks on markers of coagulation and fibrinolysis both in healthy and at-risk populations (i.e., oral-contraceptive using women traveling >4hr, genetic susceptibility for venous thromboembolism) at the Boston Marathon. In a similar, but separate internally funded study, Dr. Zaleski examined compression socks as an intervention to mitigate exercise-associated muscle damage in recreational runners at the Hartford Marathon. Dr. Zaleski coordinates an international registry of endurance athletes who have suffered blood clots so that researchers and clinicians may better understand underlying risk factors to such surprising reports in otherwise healthy athletes.

Dr. Zaleski is also Project Manager for the American College of Sports Medicine’s forthcoming Evidence-Based Position Stand on Exercise for Hypertension; Co-Chair of the New England American College of Sports Medicine Communications Committee; and an American Heart Association BLS Instructor for CPR, First-Aid, and AED.

View a complete list of Dr. Zaleski’s publications from Google Scholar.

Read two recent articles on Dr. Zaleski’s research in Runner’s World and the Hartford Courant.

EDUCATION

2000-2005       B.S.     Biology, Central Connecticut State University, New Britain, CT

2005-2008       M.S.    Allied Health, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT

2014-2018       Ph.D.   Kinesiology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT

Fellowships

2014-2016       NASA CT Space Grant Consortium Graduate Fellowship

2017-2018       University of Connecticut Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship

2019-2020       American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowship

Awards

2015    University of Connecticut Graduate School Research Forum Poster Award

2015    American Kinesiology Association Writing Award

2015    American College of Sports Medicine NASA Space Physiology Grant Award

2016    University of Connecticut Graduate School Research Forum Free Communication Award

2018    University of Connecticut Graduate Student Research Award

2018    University of Connecticut Outstanding Senior Women Academic Achievement Award

2018    New England American College of Sports Medicine Donna Murphy Service Scholarship

SELECTED RESEARCH SUPPORT

American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowship Award; American College of Sports Medicine NASA Space Physiology Research Grant; NASA CT Space Consortium Graduate Fellowship Grant; Hartford Hospital; Institute for the Center for Health, Intervention and Prevention Graduate Student Affiliate Seed Grant; CT Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation Accelerate Grant; Institute for Systems Genomics Seed Grant

SELECT PUBLICATIONS

  1. Parker BA, Augeri AL, Capizzi JA, Troyanos C, Kriz P, D’Hemecourt P, Thompson PD. Effect of Air Travel on Exercise-Induced Coagulatory and Fibrinolytic Activation in Marathon Runners.  Clin J Sport Med 2011 Mar;21(2):126-30. PMID: 21358503.
  2. Parker BA, Augeri AL, Capizzi JA, Ballard KD, Kupchak BR, Volek JS, Troyanos C, Kriz P, D’Hemecourt P, Thompson PD. Effect of a Marathon Run and Air Travel on Pre- and Post-Run Soluble D-Dimer, Microparticles’ Procoagulant Activity and p-Selectin Levels. Am J Cardiol 2012 May 15;109(10):1521-5. PMID: 22342849.
  3. Parker BA, Augeri AL, Capizzi JA, Ballard KD, Troyanos C, Baggish AL, D’Hemecourt PA, Thompson PD. Effect of statins on creatine kinase levels before and after a marathon run. Am J Cardiol. 2012 Jan 15;109(2):282-7. PMID: 22036108.
  4. Zaleski AL, Capizzi J, Ballard K, Troyanos C, Baggish A, D’Hemecourt P, Thompson P, Parker B. Statins Augment the Increase in P-Selectin Produced by Prolonged Exercise. Journal of Sports Medicine 2013 (2013). Article ID 487567.
  5. Taylor BA, Zaleski AL, Capizzi JA, Ballard KD, Troyanos C, Baggish AL, D’Hemecourt PA, Dada MR, Thompson PD. Influence of chronic exercise on carotid atherosclerosis in marathon runners. BMJ Open 2014 Feb 14;4(2). PMID: 24531453.
  6. Eijsvogels TMH, Januzzi JL, Parker BA, Isaacs SK, D’Hemecourt P, Zaleski AL, Dyer S, Troyanos CA, Weiner RB, Thompson PD, Baggish AL. Impact of statin use on exercise-induced cardiac troponin elevations. Am J Cardiol. 2014 Aug 15;114(4):624-8. PMID: 25015693
  7. Panza GA, Taylor BA, Zaleski AL, Thompson PD. An Update on the Boston Marathon as a Research Laboratory. Phys Sportsmed. 2015 Jul;43(3):312-6. PMID: 25913810
  8. Zaleski AL, Pescatello LS, Thompson PD, Taylor BA. Protective Effect of Compression Socks in a Marathon Runner with a Genetic Predisposition to Thrombophilia due to Factor V Leiden. Phys Sportsmed. 2015 Jul;43(3):324-7. PMID: 25937265
  9. Zaleski AL, Ballard KD, Panza GA, Dada MR, Thompson PD, Taylor BA. The Effect of Compression Socks Worn During a Marathon on Hemostatic Balance. Phys Sportsmed. 2015 Jul 25:1-6. PMID: 26212719
  10. Zaleski AL, Taylor BA. Of Compression and Clots: Should Endurance Athletes Wear Compression Socks When They Travel? Lower Extremity Review. 2015 Feb 8;(1): 53-56.
  11. Thompson PD, Panza GA, Zaleski AL, Taylor BA. Statin Associated Side Effects. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2016 May 24;67(20):2395-410. PMID:27199064
  12. Zaleski AL, Taylor BA, Pescatello LS, Thompson PD. Marathon Maladies: Venous Thromboembolism Risk Associated with Marathon Running. Journal of Clinical Exercise Physiology. 2016;5(1):1-5.
  13. Zaleski AL, Taylor BA, Panza GA, Wu Y, Pescatello LS, Thompson PD, Fernandez FB. Coming of Age: Considerations in the Prescription of Exercise for Older Adults. Methodist Debakey Cardiovasc J. 2016 Apr-Jun;12(2):98-104. PMID: 27486492
  14. Taylor BA, Zaleski AL, Panza GA and Bhardwaj P. The Effectiveness Ratio: Refining Exercise Prescription for Optimal Health Benefit. Journal of Clinical Exercise Physiology. 2016;5(1):1-5.
  15. Zaleski AL, Taylor BA, Pescatello LS, Thompson PD, Denegar C. Performance of Wells Score to Predict Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism in Endurance Athletes. Phys Sportsmed. 2017 Jul 21: 1-7. PMID: 28707499
  16. Taylor BA, Zaleski AL, Ballard KD, Panza GA, Fernandez AB, Lamberti L, Thompson PD, Pescatello LS, Baggish AL, Troyanos C, Taylor BA. Compression Socks Worn During Flight and Hemostatic Balance in Boston Marathon Runners on Oral Contraceptives. 2017 Jul 21. PMID: 28742614
  17. Panza GA, Taylor BA, MacDonald HV, Johnson B, Zaleski AL, Livingston J, Thompson PD, Pescatello LS. Can Exercise Improve Cognitive Symptoms of Alzheimer’s Dementia? A Meta-Analysis. Jour of Am Ger Soc. 2018 Mar;66(3):487-495. PMID: 29363108
  18. Zaleski AL, Taylor BA, Thompson PD. The Role of Coenzyme Q10 in Statin-Associated Muscle Symptoms. Adv Nutr. 2018. 9; 4: 519S–523S. PMID: 30032220
  19. Zaleski AL, Pescatello LS, Taylor BA, Armstrong LE. Special Considerations to Exercise Prescription in Extreme Environmental Conditions for Individuals with Hypertension. 2018. 7; 3:53-62
  20. Zaleski AL, Panza GA, Ballard KD, Adams W, Hosokawa Y, Pescatello LS, Thompson PD, Taylor BA. Use of Compression Socks During a Marathon Does Not Mitigate Exercise-Associated Muscle Damage. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2019 Feb 14:1-5. doi: 10.1123/jsr.2018-0060.

Book Chapters

  1. Ash GI, Zaleski, AL Eicher JD, Bruneau ML, Pescatello LS. A Prioritized Panel of Candidate Genes to be Explored for Associations with the Blood Pressure Response to Exercise. In Advances in Genetics, Vol. 9. Hauppauge NY: Nova Science Publishers. 2012.
  2. Taylor BA, Zaleski AL, Thompson PD. Book Chapter: Effects of exercise on lipid-lipoproteins in Effects of Exercise on Hypertension: From Cells to Physiological Systems. Springer. 2015.
  3. Taylor BA, Zaleski AL. Book Chapter: Special Considerations for Metabolic Syndrome, Hypertension, and Dyslipidemia. In ACSM’s Exercise Testing and Prescription. American College of Sports Medicine. Wolters Kluwer. 2017.
  4. Zaleski AL, Fernandez AB, Taylor BA, Pescatello LS. Book Chapter: Hypertension. In Clinical Exercise Physiology, 4th Human Kinetics. 2018.
  5. Zaleski AL. Book Chapter: Coenzyme Q10 in Statin-Associated Muscle Symptoms. In Statin-Associated Muscle Symptoms. Contemporary Cardiology Eds. Taylor BA and Thompson PD. Springer Publishing; Springer Nature Switzerland AG. (Forthcoming)
  6. Zaleski AL. Book Chapter: Exercise Prescription for Individuals with CVD Risk Factors. In ACSM Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 11th Ed. Eds. Roy B and Liguori. Wolters Kluwer. (Forthcoming)
Contact Information
Emailamanda.zaleski@uconn.edu
Phone860-972-3454