Craig Malbon, Director
Within this center more than 40 research groups in both clinical and basic research in the area of diabetes and endocrine-related areas.
The DERC is the home of an institutional National Research Service Award Postdoctoral Training program funded by the NIH for the past
15 years. The DERC offers expertise and training (doctoral and post-graduate/ in virtually all facets of the biochemistry and cell
biology of metabolic diseases, particularly diabetes and obesity. Research interests include cell signaling and signal transduction pathways. |
Peter Brink
This program has two major aims:
(1) to study the relationships between structure and function in cardiac ion channels and pumps and
(2) to investigate how changes in the cardiac environment during development and pathologic
states affect these proteins. Using a multidisciplinary approach that invokes biophysics, physiology, pharmacology,
cell biology, and molecular biology, the Initiative is developing collaborative research and training programs that
will be the foundation of a Cardiovascular Research Center. Specifically, it will augment its existing strengths in
patch clamping, ion channel expression, and cardiac cell biology with genetic and molecular biology techniques that
permit cloning and subsequent structure-function analysis of ion channels, pumps and exchangers. This information
will be used to map binding sitesfor pharmacological agents, leading to rational drug design, and eventually to
identify and analyze the genetic and physiological components and interactions that underlie cardiovascular diseases. |
