The current worldwide epidemic of Diabetes Mellitus has fueled intensive efforts to understand the basic genetic and molecular mechanisms of cell signaling in a variety of relevant tissues. These research efforts by both basic and clinical researchers have successfully utilized the technologies of genomics, proteomics and chemical biology as well as the traditional tools of genetics, physiology and molecular and cell biology to yield exciting new insights into this disease. Particularly novel findings relate to the interface between insulin signaling and membrane trafficking; beta cell development and apoptosis; adipocyte signaling to brain, beta cells, liver and muscle; and the role of cytokines in insulin resistance. The goal of the conference (to be held jointly with the Molecular Control of Adipogenesis and Obesity conference organized by Stephen Farmer and Sheila Collins) will be to bring together scientists working in several intersecting areas of the field, e.g., the application of new technologies to diabetes; stem cell and developmental biology; regulated membrane trafficking; integration of metabolism and gene expression; and chemistry and therapeutics. The conference will also explore the integration and utility of information derived from recently obtained gene and protein databases, as well as repositories of protein-protein interactions. Half of the sessions will be jointly held with the concurrent meeting on adipogenesis in order to optimize the information flow between researchers in the fields of the related syndromes of diabetes and obesity. This meeting format is unique among other meetings in these fields, and provides the vehicle for fertile and critical interactions between basic and physician scientists. Confirmation of this meeting's unique catalytic role is reflected in the large number of outstanding scientists who attended the last such conference in 2002. Great effort is expended on assuring that both speakers and attendees include high representation of women and minority scientists. It should also be noted that since this last meeting only a little more than a year ago, dramatic advances in the field have been made and published. Such advances include the generation of novel gene-ablated and transgenic mouse models and new understanding of the role of peptides secreted by adipocytes that act on muscle and liver to control integrated whole body metabolism and glucose tolerance. Further, the discovery of novel cellular proteins that act on processes that regulate glucose transporters and other metabolic parameters to control glucose homeostasis have been dramatic. The proposed meeting is therefore very timely and poised to make an important contribution to the field by fostering unique collaborative interactions between basic and physician scientists.
| Ihara, Arisa; Yamagata, Kazuya; Nammo, Takao et al. (2005) Functional characterization of the HNF4alpha isoform (HNF4alpha8) expressed in pancreatic beta-cells. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 329:984-90 |
