Canada Research Chair in the Genetics of Obesity and Diabetes
Susanne Clee, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Cellular & Physiological Sciences, uses mouse model systems to discover novel genetic risk factors for obesity and diabetes to reveal new pathway targets with the goal of better understanding the disease pathophysiologies and developing new therapeutic agents. Her team is on the verge of identifying a new gene that promotes obesity. They have also discovered exciting new mouse models to study obesity, including one that is completely resistant to obesity—despite actually eating more and moving less! This model that includes a high-fat diet has a natural ability to convert fat-storing cells into metabolically active fat-burning cells, which would be a promising treatment for obesity. Another mouse model will provide important clues about how insulin release into the bloodstream is regulated, which could be used to increase insulin in diabetes.