Faculty Research Interests:

Laura Armas, MD

• The effect of nutrition in fragility fracture patients with osteoporosis
• The effect of chronic kidney disease on balance
• The implementation of a fragility fracture liaison program in an academic medical center

Robert G. Bennett, PhD

• The role of relaxin in tissue fibrosis and repair
• Relaxin in adipose function and fibrosis
• Targeted treatment of the liver-adipose axis in metabolic diseases

Brian Boerner, MD

• Improving management and outcomes of post-transplant diabetes
• Inpatient management of hyperglycemia in transplant recipients

Cyrus V. Desouza, MBBS

• Improving outcomes in diabetes and obesity using treatment algorithms
• Mechanisms of diabetes and metabolic syndrome on vascular and brain function
• Cardiovascular outcome clinical trials in diabetes

Andjela Drincic, MD

• Inpatient glucose control
• Type 1 diabetes and neurosciences
• Pituitary including (growth hormone, Cushing’s, acromegaly) 

Leslie Eiland, MD

• Telemedicine clinic development
• Remote patient monitoring and its effects on outcomes and readmissions
• Management of obesity in the rural primary care setting
• Inpatient glycemic control and readmissions

Whitney S. Goldner, MD

• Thyroid nodules: risk factors and optimal evaluation and management
• Molecular markers in the evaluation of indeterminate thyroid nodules
• Evaluation, management and outcomes of thyroid cancer
• Risk factors for thyroid cancer including environmental exposures
• Evaluation and treatment of neuroendocrine tumors

Frederick G. Hamel, PhD

• Role of insulin-degrading enzyme in insulin action and development of insulin resistance
• Signal transduction mechanisms of peptide hormones, especially insulin
• Biologic activity of insulin degradation products
• Role of insulin degrading enzyme in the pathophysiology of diabetes. 
• Role of insulin degrading enzyme in insulin resistance caused by protease inhibitors
• Etiology of type 2 diabetes mellitus

Jennifer L. Larsen, MD

• Nontraditional risk factors for vascular disease after kidney transplantation;
• Primary prevention of diabetes and its complications, particularly renal, eye, and cardiovascular disease in African Americans, Native Americans, and/or adolescents with diabetes or obesity.
• Improving outcomes after islet, pancreas and/or kidney transplant
• Post-transplant diabetes: causes and treatment

Lynn R. Mack, MD

• Improving outcomes in women with diabetes during and after pregnancy
• Improving outcomes with cystic fibrosis related diabetes or bone disease
• Prevention and treatment of bone disease associated with short gut syndrome

Amy S. Neumeister, MD

• Improving glucose control in the hospitalized patient

Anery Patel, MBBS

• Role of radio-protector agents and side effects with radio-iodine therapy
• Biomarkers for thyroid cancer
• Timing of thyroglobulin nadir in thyroid cancer monitoring
• Improving U500 education in veterans 

Vijay Shivaswamy, MBBS

• Effects of immunosuppressants on insulin resistance and islet function
• Improving outcomes after islet, pancreas and/or kidney transplant

Saraswathi Viswanathan, PhD

• The role of adipose tissue inflammation in mediating obesity-linked metabolic disorders
• The role of oxidative stress and inflammation on alcoholic liver injury in obesity
• Altered amino acid metabolism in pancreatic cancer