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Departments of Chemical Physiology and Cell Biology

Nuclear Receptor Signaling in Stress and Energy Homeostasis

We are interested in the molecular mechanisms that relay metabolic stress signals to a network of transcriptional regulators, as well as the ensuing transcriptional outputs that mediate adaptive metabolic responses to the signals. In particular, our studies focus on the coactivators PGC-1α and PGC-1β (peroxisome proliferator- activated receptor γ coactivator-1α and -1β) and the orphan nuclear receptors of the estrogen-related receptor (ERR) subfamily, which control mitochondrial biogenesis and energy homeostasis. Our goals are to elucidate the biology of this transcriptional network in skeletal muscle and the central nervous system, understand how deregulation of the network leads to disease, and ultimately identify the components of the network that are most suitable for drug intervention aimed at counteracting metabolic disease.