A genetic strategy to measure insulin signaling regulation and physiology in Drosophila.

Insulin regulation is a hallmark of health, and impaired insulin signaling promotes metabolic diseases like diabetes mellitus. However, current assays for measuring insulin signaling in all animals remain semi-quantitative and lack the sensitivity, tissue-specificity or temporal resolution needed to quantify in vivo physiological signaling dynamics. Insulin signal transduction is remarkably conserved across metazoans, including insulin-dependent phosphorylation and regulation of Akt/Protein kinase B.

Effect of telehealth implementation on an adolescent metabolic and bariatric surgery program.

Background: Pediatric severe obesity is a worldwide health concern. Treatment with metabolic and bariatric surgery can reduce morbidity and mortality. The COVID-19 pandemic not only has had a significant effect on rates of pediatric obesity but also has necessitated a rapid transition to virtual medicine.

Transgenic Drosophila lines for LexA-dependent gene and growth regulation.

Conditional expression of short hairpin RNAs with binary genetic systems is an indispensable tool for studying gene function. Addressing mechanisms underlying cell-cell communication in vivo benefits from simultaneous use of 2 independent gene expression systems. To complement the abundance of existing Gal4/UAS-based resources in Drosophila, we and others have developed LexA/LexAop-based genetic tools.

Discovering signaling mechanisms governing metabolism and metabolic diseases with Drosophila.

There has been rapid growth in the use of Drosophila and other invertebrate systems to dissect mechanisms governing metabolism. New assays and approaches to physiology have aligned with superlative genetic tools in fruit flies to provide a powerful platform for posing new questions, or dissecting classical problems in metabolism and disease genetics. In multiple examples, these discoveries exploit experimental advantages as-yet unavailable in mammalian systems.

Preoperative considerations for the pediatric patient undergoing metabolic and bariatric surgery.

To ensure successful outcomes in pediatric patients with severe obesity who undergo metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS), a number of pre-operative patient management options should be considered. This manuscript will review the indications and contraindications of MBS and special considerations for youth who might benefit from MBS. The treatment team conducts a thorough pre-operative evaluation, assessing risks and benefits of surgical intervention, and prepares patients and families to be successful with MBS by providing education about the surgical intervention and lifestyle changes that will be necessary.