This application presents a rigorous program of patient-oriented research and mentoring. The P.I. is a Hispanic physician-investigator with a substantial track record in data-based, hypothesis-driven patient-oriented investigation and mentoring. As Director of the UCLA Graduate Training Program in Translational Investigation, Associate UCLA GCRC Program Director, and Editor of two Nature Publishing Group journals, Molecular Psychiatry and The Pharmacogenomics Journal, the P.I. is uniquely qualified to provide clinical research training and to mentor young clinical investigators. This award would support his efforts to develop new mentoring programs both in the P.I. 's own area of research and in the core components of clinical research. This includes mentoring in the fundamental skills, methodology, theories, and conceptualizations necessary for the well-trained, independent, clinical researcher. Specifically, the P.I. will mentor young investigators in the design of clinical research projects, hypothesis development, clinical pharmacology and pharmacogenomics, scientific writing, and the legal, ethical and regulatory issues related to clinical research. Issues that are particularly relevant to research and of general interest to those in the early stages of their careers include the training of minority clinical researchers and the conduction of research in ethnically identified minority populations. The research proposal tests the hypothesis that leptin contributes to the regulation of the dynamics of human neuroendocrine function. This hypothesis will be tested by a carefully designed, prospective clinical study of the rapidly-sampled dynamics of endocrine rhythms during the course of leptin-replacement treatment in the only three adult individuals identified so far who are leptin-naive due to a functional leptin gene mutation. We will study their endocrine function at baseline, and during the course of leptin treatment, and compare it to obese subjects who are not leptin deficient. The P.I. has previously worked with those patients. They are member of a large, extended, highly consanguineous pedigree, are morbidly obese, and present with endocrine dysfunction. To test the hypothesis that leptin impacts on the dynamics of human neuroendocrine function, we propose a series of prospective, longitudinal, rapid-sampled, 24-h endocrine studies during the course of leptin replacement therapy in those patients and in three ethnically-defined control groups. The confirmation of our hypothesis may have two consequences. For the understanding of biology, it will indicate that leptin contributes to regulate a key function of the central nervous system, which is neuroendocrine homeostasis. This work may reveal new sites of leptin action with potential therapeutic value.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Center for Research Resources (NCRR)
Type
Midcareer Investigator Award in Patient-Oriented Research (K24)
Project #
5K24RR016996-05
Application #
7013620
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZRG1-F06 (20))
Program Officer
Wilde, David B
Project Start
2002-03-15
Project End
2006-09-25
Budget Start
2006-03-01
Budget End
2006-09-25
Support Year
5
Fiscal Year
2006
Total Cost
$44,686
Indirect Cost
Name
University of California Los Angeles
Department
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
092530369
City
Los Angeles
State
CA
Country
United States
Zip Code
90095
Paz-Filho, Gilberto; Mastronardi, Claudio A; Licinio, Julio (2015) Leptin treatment: facts and expectations. Metabolism 64:146-56
Wong, Ma-Li; Dong, Chuanhui; Flores, Deborah L et al. (2014) Clinical outcomes and genome-wide association for a brain methylation site in an antidepressant pharmacogenetics study in Mexican Americans. Am J Psychiatry 171:1297-309
Licinio, J; Negrao, A B; Wong, M-L (2014) Plasma leptin concentrations are highly correlated to emotional states throughout the day. Transl Psychiatry 4:e475
Berman, Steven M; Paz-Filho, Gilberto; Wong, Ma-Li et al. (2013) Effects of leptin deficiency and replacement on cerebellar response to food-related cues. Cerebellum 12:59-67
Wong, M-L; Dong, C; Andreev, V et al. (2012) Prediction of susceptibility to major depression by a model of interactions of multiple functional genetic variants and environmental factors. Mol Psychiatry 17:624-33
Ishibashi, K; Berman, S M; Paz-Filho, G et al. (2012) Dopamine D2/D3 receptor availability in genetically leptin-deficient patients after long-term leptin replacement. Mol Psychiatry 17:352-3
London, Edythe D; Berman, Steven M; Chakrapani, Shruthi et al. (2011) Short-term plasticity of gray matter associated with leptin deficiency and replacement. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 96:E1212-20
Paz-Filho, Gilberto; Mastronardi, Claudio; Delibasi, Tuncay et al. (2010) Congenital leptin deficiency: diagnosis and effects of leptin replacement therapy. Arq Bras Endocrinol Metabol 54:690-7
Galgani, Jose E; Greenway, Frank L; Caglayan, Sinan et al. (2010) Leptin replacement prevents weight loss-induced metabolic adaptation in congenital leptin-deficient patients. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 95:851-5
Paz-Filho, Gilberto; Licinio, Julio; Wong, Ma-Li (2010) Pathophysiological basis of cardiovascular disease and depression: a chicken-and-egg dilemma. Rev Bras Psiquiatr 32:181-91

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