Feyza Engin, PhD

Position title: Biomolecular Chemistry, Medicine

Department: Biomolecular Chemistry, Department of Medicine

Immunology Focus area: Autoimmunity

Descriptive Title of Research: The role ER homeostasis and stress responses in the pathology of autoimmune diabetes

Research Description: Type 1 diabetes (T1D) results from an autoimmune-mediated destruction of pancreatic b-cells and affects approximately 3 million people in the United States and 10–20 million worldwide. The rapidly increasing incidence of T1D, as much as 3-5% per year, is of the great concern. Currently there is no way to cure or prevent T1D, hence a deeper understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms of this disease is essential to the development of new therapies. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, caused by protein misfolding, chronic inflammation and environmental factors, plays an important role in diabetes pathogenesis. Upon ER stress, the unfolded protein response (UPR), a signaling cascade mediated by ER membrane-localized sensors, is triggered to re-establish cellular homeostasis. Despite accumulating data suggesting an involvement of the aberrant UPR with T1D, the function of individual UPR sensors in T1D still remains unknown. By using in vitro systems as well as recently generated mouse models, our laboratory aims to identify the function of the unfolded protein response (UPR) during the progression of type 1 diabetes and fill critical knowledge gaps regarding β-cell biology, β-cell-immune cell dialogue at earlier stages of disease and T1D pathogenesis.

Link to Publications: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=engin+f%5BAuthor+Name%5D

Graduate Program Affiliations:

Lab Website: http://enginlab.org/