A Cellular Structure that Protects Against Amino Acid Stress

Amino acids form the basic building blocks of all life, used by cells both as fuel and in building proteins and other complex molecules. Cellular amino acid levels must be tightly controlled. Amino acid surplus is problematic and is a characteristic of many age-related diseases, including cancer and diabetes. Scientists do not yet fully understand how cells detect and respond to amino acid excess, and how this excess causes cellular damage. Continue reading → A Cellular Structure that Protects Against Amino Acid Stress

Glucagon Be-Gone: A Cure for Type 1 Diabetes?

University of Utah Health investigator William Holland, PhD, and colleagues found that blocking glucagon action in mice restored levels of both insulin and glucose, effectively curing type 1 diabetes. Their groundbreaking work, which was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, reveals that suppressing glucagon production or action may be a viable means of treating type 1 diabetes. Continue reading → Glucagon Be-Gone: A Cure for Type 1 Diabetes?

Gene Expression and Health Risks

An important area of research involves learning how gene expression influences health and disease risks. The parts of the genome that regulate gene expression are cis-regulatory elements. Gregg and colleagues took an unusual approach to discover these cis-regulatory elements by analyzing the genomes of species that evolved disease resistance “superpowers”. Continue reading → Gene Expression and Health Risks

ARF6 Plays Key Role in Diabetes-Induced Blindness

University of Utah Health researcher Weiquan Zhu, PhD, and colleagues identified a protein, known as ARF6, which regulates the effects of VEGF by maintaining and amplifying its receptor signaling, thus stimulating a series of cascading responses that lead to diabetic retinal edema. Continue reading → ARF6 Plays Key Role in Diabetes-Induced Blindness