Research Description
Obesity's pivotal role in the development of type 2 diabetes remains a focal point. Amidst this landscape, exercise emerges as a powerful tool for combating both obesity and type 2 diabetes. To unravel the intricate link between obesity, type 2 diabetes, and exercise, researchers delve into the realm of genetics. While the value of exercise has been acknowledged, the intricate mechanisms underlying its beneficial effects remain veiled in mystery. Particularly, the role of jumping genes, which comprise about half of human genome, remains largely unexplored in the context of obesity and exercise. Jumping genes, aptly named due to their mobility within a genome, have the capacity to induce mutations, inflammation, and accelerate aging, threatening human health. Thus, a comprehensive understanding of their precise role in glucose regulation necessitates closer examination. This study aims to investigate the detrimental effects of these mobile genetic elements on obesity and type 2 diabetes. Furthermore, this study will find an exercise-driven strategy that can suppress jumping genes prevalent in the genome. By uncovering methods to suppress the activity of jumping genes through exercise, this research holds the promise of revealing innovative therapeutic targets for addressing both obesity and type 2 diabetes. Overall, by shedding light on the complicated interactions between genetics, exercise, and obesity, this study will provide valuable insights that could pave the way for new approaches to the treatment of type 2 diabetes.Research Profile
What area of diabetes research does your project cover? What role will this particular project play in preventing, treating and/or curing diabetes?This study seeks to enhance our comprehension of the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes. I anticipate that this research will play a role in preventing and treating type 2 diabetes by revealing the influence of transposable elements on the development of the condition. Understanding the effects of these jumping genes on cell homeostasis and genetic stability will contribute significantly to unraveling the underlying mechanisms of type 2 diabetes.
If a person with diabetes were to ask you how your project will help them in the future, how would you respond?Numerous transposable elements are actively moving within your genome, exacerbating the condition of diabetes. This research aims to elucidate the mechanism of quelling the activity of these transposable elements through exercise, with the anticipation that it will ameliorate type 2 diabetes by mitigating DNA damage.
Why important for you, personally, to become involved in diabetes research? What role will this award play?The global prevalence of type 2 diabetes is escalating at an alarming pace. Diabetes heightens the susceptibility to various ailments such as cardiovascular diseases, aging-related conditions, and cancer. This not only compromises individual well-being but also imposes a substantial societal burden. Hence, it is imperative to unravel the pathogenesis of diabetes and devise novel treatments. This grant will prove instrumental in advancing our comprehension of type 2 diabetes by uncovering the correlation between transposable elements, physical activity, and the onset of type 2 diabetes—a dimension that has hitherto remained unexplored.
In what direction do you see the future of diabetes research going?Numerous prior investigations on type 2 diabetes have concentrated on understanding gene expression regulation and cellular signaling pathways. However, considering that only a small fraction, approximately 2%, of our genome is comprised of genes, I anticipate that forthcoming research in diabetes will increasingly delve into elucidating the connection between diabetes and the non-coding genomic region—an unexplored realm.