"Role of dsRNA pathways and miRNA-regulatory machinery in obesity" Dr. Takahisa Nakamura.

Speaker: Takahisa Nakamura, Ph.D.

Divisions of Endocrinology and Developmental Biology

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center

Title: Role of dsRNA pathways and miRNA-regulatory machinery in obesity

Abstract: A broad array of inflammatory and stress responses is frequently evoked in insulin-targeted metabolic tissues during the pathogenesis of obesity. This atypical state engages immune response pathways, including activation of a variety of stress kinases, elevated production of an array of immune mediators, and recruitment of immune cells into metabolic tissues, which negatively impact nutrient metabolism and insulin action. However, the molecular basis for the induction of metabolic inflammation and the vast network of pathological responses in obesity remains elusive. Recent evidence indicates that metabolic inflammation results from deregulated double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) processing/signaling in metabolic tissues, which adversely regulates systemic glucose metabolism in obesity. These findings suggest the involvement of altered RNA networks in the immunometabolic regulation of obesity. This presentation will focus on the regulation of endogenous dsRNA and microRNA-mediated events and how their functional changes are associated with inflammatory responses and metabolic deterioration in obesity.