Specific Clinical/Research Interest:
The role of insulin and the insulin-like growth factors in pathological states including diabetes, growth, bone disorders and cancer.

Postdoctoral Fellows: Nyosha Alikhani, Rosalyn Ferguson, Emily Gallagher

Research Faculty: Ying-Jie Wu, PhD

Research Personnel: Hui Sun

Summary of Research Studies:
The laboratory of Derek LeRoith, MD, PhD, focuses on understanding the insulin and insulin-like growth factors in disease states. His current research includes studies using animal models of Type 2 diabetes and understanding the pathophysiology of the disorder as well as response to various established and newly discovered therapies. Using these models the laboratory is studying the effects of hyperlipidemia on the progression of the disease as well as on the vascular complications. These studies involve both phenotyping the metabolic responses using in vivo techniques such as hyperglycemic-euglycemic clamps, as well as in vitro cell culture studies on inflammatory cells and adipocytokines that are involved in the vascular complications. In addition, this model is being used to study the effects of diabetes on bone, a common disorder. Another set of studies involves the insulin-like growth factor system and its role in cancer. These involve both cell culture studies of the insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor signaling pathways that affect cell cycle proteins, ER stress, cell survival, migration and cell proliferation. The animal models include gene-deletion studies of the IGF system; both IGF-1 and the IGF-1 receptor and effects on breast and colon cancer and metastases. These and other on-going studies are expected to identify novel targets for cancer therapy.