Obesity is a major contributor to the metabolic syndrome. The mechanisms by which excess adiposity may promote the development of vascular disease remain obscure. Understanding how well-defined alterations in body weight affect inflammation, insulin resistance, and vascular structure and function will provide new insight into the complex pathophysiology of an extremely common disorder. Our proposed SCCOR will utilize a unique Core dedicated to implementing standardized weight loss protocols in obese people with the metabolic syndrome in order to facilitate discovery research in these patients. The Clinical Science Service Core (CSSC, Core Unit A) will help SCCOR investigators: 1) recruit subjects for the research studies that involve human volunteers (Projects 1, 3, 4, 5, and 6), 2) provide effective weight loss therapy for subjects participating in protocols that require subjects to lose weight (Projects 3, 4, 5, and 6), and 3) obtain appropriate blood and tissue samples for basic science investigators conducting studies in human subjects. The CSSC will be comprised of a Weight Management Unit (WMU), a Subject Recruitment Unit (SRU), and Sample Acquisition Unit (SAU), supervised by the same staff to ensure smooth interaction among the units and reduce overall administrative costs. The WMU will use a multidisciplinary approach to achieve weight loss in study subjects. It is estimated that a total of 65 subjects will be enrolled in weight loss therapy for Projects 3, 5, and 6 and that an additional 40 subjects will enroll in weight loss therapy for Project 4. The SRU will assist investigators in identifying and recruiting appropriate study subjects for Projects 1, 3, 4, 5, and 6, and will maintain a computerized database of research volunteers. The SAU will obtain blood and muscle tissue samples from obese subjects before and after weight loss for Projects 3, 4, and 5. This Core has the potential to transform the care of people with the metabolic syndrome by establishing a framework for linking basic research discoveries in vascular disease to potentially beneficial effects of weight loss in humans.
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