George Washington University · PharmacologyMendelowitz Lab
David Mendelowitz · Washington, District of Columbia
Research Focus
Dr. David Mendelowitz's lab focuses on finding new ways to combat the dangers of opioid overdose, a significant public health crisis. Specifically, they are exploring the potential of oxytocin, a hormone that is already approved for other medical uses, to prevent and treat respiratory depression caused by opioids. The lab aims to test various doses and methods of administering oxytocin in both animal models and clinical trials to assess its effectiveness before, during, and after opioid use.
opiate addictionopioid-induced respiratory depressionoxytocinclinical trialspain managementfentanyldrug repurposing
Research Aims
6AIM 01Evaluate the efficacy of oxytocin in reversing opioid-induced respiratory depression.
AIM 02Test oxytocin's effects on pain management in animals receiving fentanyl.
AIM 03Investigate the role of specific neurons in oxytocin's effect on respiratory depression.
AIM 04Obtain approvals for clinical trials evaluating oxytocin in patients.
AIM 05Conduct clinical trials to assess oxytocin's impact on apnea and respiratory distress.
AIM 06Measure oxytocin's influence on pain perception and opioid dosage in chronic pain patients.
Skills the Lab Values
intranasal administration techniquesanimal modelingclinical trial designpain assessmentpharmacological dosingdata collection and analysisdouble-blind study methodsdrug efficacy evaluationrespiratory function assessment
Output against the department
Publications237top 35% of dept.161st of 462
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations5.4kbottom 40% of dept.278th of 462
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.