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Patrick Hu

Department of Medicine
Division of Hematology and Oncology
Department of Cell and Developmental Biology (CDB)
Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center (DRTC)
Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC)


Aging is the major risk factor for common illnesses that account for most human morbidity and mortality. My lab uses the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans to study the role of a conserved insulin-like growth factor signaling pathway in development, metabolism, and aging. We seek to reveal insights into basic mechanisms of aging that may lead to new strategies to prevent and manage prevalent diseases such as diabetes and cancer.

Aging is the major risk factor for common illnesses that account for most human morbidity and mortality. My lab uses the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans to study the role of a conserved insulin-like growth factor signaling pathway in development, metabolism, and aging. We seek to reveal insights into basic mechanisms of aging that may lead to new strategies to prevent and manage prevalent diseases such as diabetes and cancer.

Keywords: C. elegans , development , aging , insulin-like growth factors , signal transduction , FoxO transcription factors

Research Area: Diabetes, Obesity, Metabolism , Cancer Biology , Cardiovascular Biology , Molecular Pathology , Cell Signaling