Diabetes Research

Dr. Saraswathy Nair, Ph.D
Assistant Professor
Office Location: BRHP 1.120
Office Phone: 956-882-5108
Lab Location: BRHP 1.133
Lab Phone: 956-882-5037
Saraswathy.Nair@utb.edu

Research Summary

My overall research interest is in discovering the pathophysiological basis of human diseases such as obesity and diabetes or related disorders. Chronic stress and inflammation are known to accelerate the development of obesity, insulin resistance, Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. My research will investigate the pathways that lead from stress and inflammation to chronic disease. In my laboratory, mammalian cell culturing and animal models will be used to test the functional role of various genes and proteins in the pathways that lead to obesity and diabetes. Chemical inhibitors, inducers, knockdown of function using siRNA techniques or mutated gene constructs will be utilized to assess the functional role of any given gene/protein. Additionally, I will collaborate with clinical researchers, to investigate the correlations between clinical symptoms and biological and genetic factors in obesity and diabetes in the Mexican American population.