New Insights into Insulin Resistance-Molecular Mechanisms and Therapeutic Implications

Symposium — Saturday, April 22, 2024 — 3:15 PM - 5:15 PM — , Room W192B
American Federation for Medical Research (AFMR) — Chair: Sharma Prabhakar — Co-Chair: Meredith Hawkins, MD, MS

Insulin resistance is the predominant defect underlying type II diabetes mellitus. More significantly insulin resistance is the pathophysiologic hallmark of metabolic syndrome which clinically manifests as a cluster composed of obesity, hypertension, impaired glycemic control or diabetes, hyperlipidemia and leads to increased cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality. Insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia have been incriminated as independent CV risk factors. Understanding the pathogenesis of insulin resistance is of utmost significance and warrants more basic and clinical investigation to develop novel strategies for its prevention and management. This symposium is being developed to present several lines of such investigations pursued by a group of leading researchers in this field. Dr. Meredith Hawkins will be presenting her investigations that underscore the role of vitamin D in adipose tissue inflammation and fibrosis and how such effects will contribute to insulin resistance. Furthermore she will discuss the concept of and the evidence for central nervous system regulation of glucose control. Dr. Franco Folli will his discuss new findings on the mechanisms of action of exenatide and liraglutide, both agonists of glucogon-like peptide-1 and how these agents, besides their effects on pancreatic beta cells, also increase peripheral tissue insulin sensitivity. Dr. Sreejayan Nair will give a presentation that focusses further on additional insights into mechanisms underlying insulin resistance and specifically how chromium plays a physiologic role in insulin signaling pathways such as trans-membrane translocation of GLUT-4 vesicles and thereby enhance insulin sensitivity . Finally Dr. Naima Mustaid-Moussa will discuss the effects of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) in preventing the insulin resistance in high fat fed animals. In particular she will elaborate the experiments that demonstrate that EPA reduces inflammation in adipose tissue by down regulating the pro-inflammatory genes. In summary, this symposium seeks to present a variety of research studies that relate to mechanisms underlying insulin resistance and actions of several interventions, pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic, that improve insulin sensitivity. These data enhance our current understanding of the pathophysiologic basis of insulin resistance, particularly in obesity and metabolic syndrome and thereby set the stage for future studies to expand our approaches to manage this serious clinical syndrome

Speakers

• Role of Vitamin D and Neural Glycemic Control in Insulin Sensitivity
  Meredith Hawkins, MD, MS — Internal Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine


• Novel Pleiotropic Effects of GLP1 Receptor Agonists on Beta Cell Function and Whole Body Insulin Sensitivity.
  Franco Folli, MD, PhD — Internal Medicine, University of Texas at San Antonio


• Strategies to Prevent Diabetes by Targeting Insulin Resistance
  Sreejayan Nair, PhD — Pharmacology, University of Wyoming, School of Pharmacy


• Role of Adipose Tissue Inflammation in Insulin Resistance
  Naima Moustaid-Moussa, PhD, FTOS, FAHA — Nutritional Sciences, Texas Tech University