We know that type 2 diabetes is an increasingly widespread health problem in the country. In fact, more than three million Canadians were diagnosed with diabetes in 2022, 9 out of 10 of whom are type 2. If we want to better treat this metabolic disease and improve the quality of life of patients , we must first shed light on the mechanisms leading to its appearance.
This subject has always fascinated Gareth Lim, holder of the Canada Research Chair in adipocyte formation. He and his research group focus on energy homeostasis and glucose regulation in adipocytes, that is to say the cells that store fat, also called fat cells or fat cells.
Deciphering molecular mechanisms
Specifically, Dr. Lim studies the role of molecular scaffolding proteins, particularly the 14-3-3 family of proteins, in the function, evolution and survival of adipocytes and pancreatic beta cells, which secrete insulin, the hormone that activates the body’s use of glucose to provide energy.
The link with type 2 diabetes? These two types of cells are involved in the onset of the disease as well as in the development of obesity, which itself is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes.
“Over the past year, we have attempted to determine how the 14-3-3 zeta protein controls or influences insulin secretion in the beta cell and what are the molecular mechanisms that regulate the development of adipocytes,” specifies the researcher. “We take advantage of the interactome – the mapping of all the interactions between the proteins and cells of an organism – to identify new players in the development of an adipocyte. »
Alongside this mammoth task, Lim and his team are conducting drug repurposing studies to assess whether 14-3-3 zeta could cure colorectal cancer.
Synergy with CRCHUM platforms
Since Mr. Lim’s laboratory uses different strains of mice to test his hypotheses, his team uses several innovative platforms at the CRCHUM, starting with the state-of-the-art animal facility, which holds a certificate of good animal practice from the Canadian Human Protection Council. animals. In addition, the small animal phenotyping and imaging platform allows it to understand what happens when we delete or overexpress the gene responsible for the production of the 14-3-3 zeta protein, for example if there is an impact on the quantity of fat cells and carbohydrate metabolism in mice.
His team also uses cutting-edge equipment from cytometry, cellular imaging, molecular pathology and cellular physiology platforms for cellular work, which allows it to accelerate its research. For its part, the transgenesis and animal modeling platform is proving valuable for the derivation of mouse strains, or the storage and freezing of sperm and embryos for lines that will be studied later.
Inspiring the scientists of tomorrow
In addition to advancing the knowledge of diabetes and obesity towards the development of more effective treatments, Gareth Lim is very happy to help students in his laboratory progress in their careers, so that they contribute to scientific advances in turn.
This portrait is taken from our activity report 2023-2024
