Atlanta Press Releases category interest

ATLANTA — Chong Hyun Shin, a research assistant professor in the Institute for Biomedical Sciences at Georgia State University, has received a three-year, $600,000 federal grant to study small molecules targeting obesity-linked diabetes.

The grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health will be used to evaluate the therapeutic potential of a new orally active small molecule in obesity-linked diabetic models.

About 95 percent of the diabetic population suffers from Type 2 diabetes, which is rapidly rising in prevalence. The critical determinant for progression to Type 2 diabetes is a gradual decrease in β-cell function closely associated with hyperglycemia, according to the researchers.

“Globally, obesity is the major driver of Type 2 diabetes,” Shin said. “Energy expenditure and fat oxidation, rather than the appetite control with multiple fundamental concerns, are considered the key determining factors of weight loss to enhance glycemic control. However, many of the drugs stimulating energy expenditure have failed in clinical development or been withdrawn from the market due to lack of efficacy or side effects.

“Our goal is to assess the therapeutic potential of a new orally active small molecule in obesity-linked diabetic models. The outcomes of our proposed studies will make a significant breakthrough for developing highly translational therapeutic strategies to mitigate obesity-linked diabetes.”

In this project, the researchers will analyze the pharmacokinetic profiles of a new small molecule. They aim to investigate the efficacy and mechanisms of this new small molecule in improving pancreatic islet cell function and mitigating adiposity via stimulating energy expenditure to enhance glycemic control. Studies will be performed in high-fat diet-fed obese and overtly hyperglycemic/diabetic mice.

They will also evaluate the efficacy of this new small molecule in ameliorating β- and α-cell dysfunctions in human islets exposed to a diabetic environment to examine whether the inherent anti-hyperglycemic effect of the new small molecule translates from animal models to humans.