Decoding the Intestinal Hormonal Orchestra: High-Content Screen for Novel Appetite-Controlling Drugs (IHO-SCREEN)
Novo Nordisk Foundation
Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences - University of Copenhagen
By 2035 it is projected that more than 50% of the world population will be obese and that the annual global economic impact of overweight and obesity related illnesses is estimated to hit 4 trillion USD. Enhanced signalling via the Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor pathway is now used for both diabetes and obesity. However, although the intestine constitutes our largest endocrine organ and major source of GLP-1, control over its secretion from the intestinal tract remains unchartered for regulation of appetite, energy expenditure and metabolism. We will utilise our expertise in culturing human intestinal epithelial cells as organoids to identify new methods for controlling hormone production and release from the intestinal epithelium in vivo. Such compounds and the identification of potential downstream mechanisms will provide candidates for further drug development and biological insights into how hormone production and secretion is orchestrated from a mechanistic perspective.
Research / Projects / Award