Translating Obesity, Metabolic Dysfunction and Comorbid Disease States

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PROJECT SUMMARY Obesity rates continue to rise in adolescents, adults, and aging populations leading to greater rates of chronic disease and comorbid disease conditions across the lifespan. Obesity and associated chronic disease conditions plague our healthcare system, negatively influence quality of life, and exact a terrible financial toll on society. Obesity induces pathologies that dramatically increase risk of metabolic disease states, cardiovascular dysfunction, chronic kidney disease, significant orthopedic limitations, and various forms of cancer. Obesity also increases risk for chronic debilitating pain conditions and mental health disorders (stress, depression, anxiety). Evidence over the last 3 decades shows that our current healthcare system is not effective in preventing or treating obesity and associated complications. Traditional methodologies have largely been ineffective because they have focused on single mode interventions (exercise, diet, pharmacology) or have not been effectively translated from the bench to the clinic or the clinic to population level. New research-driven solutions and therapies that bridge basic biomedical science, clinical, and population health research that are synergistically aligned and address the multi-modal constructs underlying obesity and co-morbid disease conditions are needed. Because obesity is central to so many diseases and comorbid conditions, and is increasingly prevalent, we argue that obesity should be a centerpiece in the training for the next generation of scientists. Our T32 proposal entitled “Translating Obesity, Metabolic Dysfunction and Comorbid Disease States” will provide foundational research training to predoctoral graduate students. The T32 training program will have 4 Pre- Doctoral trainees provided support for ~2 years and will strive to prepare trainees to work with divergent disciplines and foster synergistic and translational research teams. Trainees will be co-mentored by both basic science and clinical faculty and will interact with an internal advisory committee with basic, clinical, and translational scientific expertise. Trainees will take part in a unique training program involving both a diverse set of activities (seminars, meetings, didactic course work) and customized plans that meet the needs and goals of each trainee. The University of Kansas Medical Center (KUMC) has the necessary resources and scientific environment for this program including an established culture of translational researchers, a well-established community of federally funded investigators studying obesity and obesity associated comorbid disease conditions across the lifespan, synergy with the leading healthcare provider in the area (University of Kansas Health System), and access to a diverse population of research participants significantly impacted by obesity (urban, rural, various socioeconomic and ethnic groups). We expect that our T32 will provide unique training for predoctoral candidates, foster new collaborative research networks, and lead to new scientific discoveries for the treatment and prevention of obesity.