Dynamics of the Human Thyroid: Towards Clinical Applications

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AbstractThe thyroid, the largest gland in the endocrine system, secretes hormones that regulate homeostatic functions within the body and promote normal growth and development. In recent years, great strides have been made in identifying chemical signal pathways within the thyroid. Based upon recent molecular-level discoveries and clinical observations, this team has engineered a detailed computational model of the thyroid gland. Motivated by this model's development and confirmation, the main goal of the proposed research is to understand the thyroid's fundamental dynamics and to translate this understanding into therapeutic protocols for treating thyroid dysfunction. Examples of the proposed research include: 1) Understanding the dynamic of thyroid enlargement (goiter), 2) Analyzing the effects of drugs and environmental contaminants on thyroid hormone secretion, and 3) Improving radioactive iodine treatment of Grave's disease. The intellectual merit of this work is centered upon coordination of computational modeling, dynamical systems analysis, and clinical experience. The broader impact of the proposed research has short and long term implications: (i) improving diagnosis power (early intervention), (ii) improving treatment protocols (Grave's disease and hormone replacement), and (iii) enabling enhanced testing/screening of pharmaceuticals (mimic, enhance, diminish or block hormone actions).