My research aims at understanding key molecular events that occur with obesity to trigger disruptions in metabolism and glucose homeostasis and eventually lead to type 2 diabetes. Such molecular events include changes in genes responsible for promoting fibrosis and inhibiting proper insulin signaling. Finding the underpinnings of these events will allow us to discover therapeutic targets to prevent or treat obesity-induced insulin resistance and/or diabetes.
Does obesity increase fibrosis within the body and cause dysfunction in various organs that regulate glucose homeostasis?
How do pancreatic stellate cells influence fibrotic mechanisms under obese and diabetic conditions?
How do genes that get upregulated with obesity influence glucose and insulin signaling in skeletal muscle, adipose, liver, and pancreatic tissues?