Research Interests
- Lipids
- Zebrafish
- Biochemistry
- Hormones
- Kinase
- Monocarboxylate Transporter
- Ketone Bodies
- Molecular Genetics
- Adipose Tissue
- Diabetes Mellitus
- Endocrinology
- Obesity
- Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
Board Certification and Academic Information
| Academic Departments |
Internal Medicine - Associate Professor
Biochemistry - Adjunct Associate Professor
|
| Academic Divisions |
Endocrinology and Metabolism
|
| Board Certification |
American Board of Internal Medicine (Internal Medicine)
American Board of Internal Medicine (Sub: Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism)
|
Academic Office Locations
| Academic Office Phone Number |
Academic Office Address |
| (801) 585-0730 |
George and Dolores Eccles Institute of Human Genetics
15 N 2030 E
Salt Lake City, UT 84112 |
Academic Bio
Dr. Schlegel was a trainee in the Medical Scientist Training Program of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine where he received his M.D. and Ph.D. He was an intern and resident physician at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, MA, and was a Fellow in Medicine at Harvard Medical School. He was a clinical fellow in the Diabetes, Endocrine, and Metabolism Training Program at the University of California San Francisco, where he was subsequently a post-doctoral associate in the laboratory of Professor Didier Y.R. Stainier, Ph.D., in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics. It was there that he established a zebrafish molecular genetic system for studying lipid metabolism.
In 2010, Dr. Schlegel was recruited to the University of Utah as an investigator in the Molecular Medicine Program and as an Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine and Biochemistry. He hosts graduate students in his lab through the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Graduate programs. His laboratory uses model organisms (zebrafish and mice) to identify and characterize new genes that participate in lipid metabolism. The long-term goal of this work is to identify novel therapeutic targets for treating obesity, type 2 diabetes, and lipid disorders.
Research Statement
My laboratory takes a multi-pronged approach to identifying and characterizing novel genes involved in lipid and glucose metabolism. Starting with unbiased, forward genetic screens in zebrafish, we isolate mutants with lipid phenotypes of interested (e.g., inappropriate accumulation of lipids in the liver, altered adipose lipid mass). We then clone and characterize the affected genes. We also use modern genetic methods to delete or selectively express genes of therapeutic interest, with a particular emphasis on the control of intestinal lipid handling as a platform for treating dyslipidemia and atherosclerosis. We take similar approaches to elucidating the roles of gene identified in human population genetics studies in glucose metabolism and type 2 diabetes mellitus pathogenesis. Characterization of mutant and transgenic zebrafish involves a broad range of methods spanning sophisticated microscopy (confocal and transmission electron), biochemical techniques, and, where appropriate, pilot pharmacological studies. We use in vitro enzymology, cell culture (including primary culture of human hepatocytes), and rodent (mice and rats) physiology to complement our work in zebrafish.
Lab Website