Samuel Verges PhD

Dr. Samuel Verges studied Sport Sciences and Exercise Physiology at Grenoble University, France. In 2003 he received his PhD in Exercise Physiology following his work dealing with respiratory abnormalities in endurance athletes under the supervision of Prof Levy. Afterward, he spent 3 years in Zurich, Switzerland, in Prof Boutellier and Dr Spengler's Lab at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and Zurich University. In 2007, Dr. Verges was back in France at the Grenoble University Hospital as a research assistant. In 2009 he was recruited as a senior scientist at the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM). He is now working in Grenoble within the "Hypoxia-Physiopathology Laboratory" (HP2 laboratory, U1042 INSERM) whose director is Prof Pepin, where he is leading research projects on neuromuscular function and hypoxia. He has been the head of the Exercise-Hypoxia group of the HP2 laboratory since 2014.

Dr. Verges's first research experiences were focused on exercise testing in cross-country skiers emphasizing the need to perform field tests in these athletes. His PhD work dealt with respiratory abnormalities in endurance athletes, including bronchial dysfunction, ventilatory limitations, and exercise-induced hypoxemia as potential factors responsible for exercise performance limitation. During his Post-doc in Switzerland, Dr. Verges performed exhaustive research on respiratory muscle fatigue during exercise and its impact on exercise performance; he also evaluated the impact of respiratory muscle training on exercise response and performance in healthy subjects. Back in France, he performed several clinical studies evaluating the impact of respiratory muscle training on patients. He also used magnetic nerve stimulation as a powerful tool to investigate neuromuscular fatigue under various settings. He develops an integrative and translational approach to better understand the role of neuromuscular fatigue (respiratory/locomotor muscles, peripheral/central mechanisms) in exercise performance limitation both in healthy subjects and in patients. Dr. Verges is now leading research projects investigating the effects of hypoxia in healthy subjects exposed to hypoxic environments and in hypoxemic patients. Dr. Verges's work has led to more than 80 articles in international peer-reviewed journals and received several national and international prices.