Diabetes and obesity are the most common metabolic disorders and are reaching epidemic proportions in the United States and worldwide. Over the past decade tremendous progress has been made in dissecting the some of the molecular components of insulin action and insulin secretion. In addition, we have begun to unravel the pathophysiology of these disorders at a cellular, molecular and genetic level. Despite this, except in rare cases of monogenic forms of type 2 diabetes, the exact details underlying diabetes and how they are integrated to produce the final disease remain unknown. This conference will bring together geneticists, biochemists, molecular biologists, cell biologists, animal and human physiologists, and those interested in development and design of new drugs for diabetes in an interactive forum for exchange of the latest ideas and data surrounding this problem. Sessions will include signaling in the pancreatic beta cell and insulin sensitive tissues, genetics of diabetes, tissue specific abnormalities in the pathophysiology of diabetes, metabolic regulation of gene expression, new technologies in the pathophysiology of diabetes (gene expression profiling, proteomics, knockout mice), impact and molecular mechanisms of environmental effect, including obesity and intrauterine nutrition in development of diabetes, and the interaction between obesity and insulin resistance in the pathogenesis of diabetes. The participants will include students, post-docs, academic faculty and scientists from industry. This conference will be held simultaneously with a Keystone Conference on Obesity, with several joint sessions, to maximize cross-fertilization. Keystone conferences on diabetes have been held every 2-3 years, and have had increasing registration approaching 600 people (when combined with the obesity conference).
