Bio
Research in the lab focuses on understanding mechanisms by which nutrients influence gene expression, as well as elucidating how nutrient excess disrupts these normal processes, leading to hepatic insulin resistance.
EDUCATION
1987 B.Sc. Biology, University of Barcelona, Spain
1993 PhD Molecular Genetics, University of Barcelona, Spain
1994-1998 Postdoctoral fellow, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
HONORS AND AWARDS
1994 Best Young Investigator Award on Human Genetics, Spanish Association of Human Genetics, Spain
1999-2003 Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International/Career Development Award
2009-2012 Member, American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy, Gene therapy of Genetic Diseases Committee
2009-2012 Standing member, American Diabetes Association Research Grant Review Committee
2011-2017 Standing Member, Gene and Drug Delivery Systems study section, NIH
2017-2018 American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy, Oligonucleotide and RNAi Therapeutics Committee Chair
Key Publications
Jideonwo VN, Hou, Y., Ahn M, Surendran S, Morral N. Impact of silencing hepatic SREBP-1 on insulin signaling. PLoS ONE 13(5): e0196704 (2018).
Surendran S, Jideonwo VN, Merchun C, Ahn M, Murray J, Ryan J, Dunn K, Kota J, Morral N. Gene targets of mouse miR-709: regulation of distinct pools. Scientific Reports 6:18958 (2016).
Mansouri A, Pacheco-López G, Ramachandran D, Arnold M, Leitner C, Prip-Buus C, Langhans W, and Morral N. Enhancing hepatic mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation stimulates eating in food-deprived mice. The American Journal of Physiology - Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology 308:R131-R137 (2015).
Ruiz, R., Jideonwo, V., Ahn, M., Surendran, S., Tagliabracci, VS., Hou, Y., Gamble, A., Kerner, J., Irimia-Dominguez, JM., Puchowicz, MA., DePaoli-Roach, A., Hoppel, C., Roach, P., Morral, N. Sterol Regulatory Element Binding Protein-1 (SREBP-1) is required to regulate glycogen synthesis and gluconeogenic gene expression in mouse liver. Journal of Biological Chemistry 289:5510-5517 (2014).
Ahn, M., Witting, S.R., Ruiz, R., Saxena, R., Morral, N. Constitutive expression of shRNA in vivo triggers build up of mature hairpin molecules. Human Gene Therapy 22:1483-1497 (2011).
Ruiz, R., Witting, S.R., Saxena, R., Morral, N. Robust hepatic gene silencing for functional studies using helper-dependent adenovirus vectors. Human Gene Therapy 20:87-94 (2009).
Morral, N., Edenberg, HJ., Witting, SR., Altomonte, J., Chu, T., Brown, M. Effects of glucose metabolism on regulation of genes of fatty acid synthesis and triglyceride secretion in the liver. Journal of Lipid Research 48:1499-1510 (2007).
Morral, N. Novel targets and therapeutic strategies for type 2 diabetes. Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism 14:169-75 (2003).
Morral, N., O’Neal, W.K., Rice, R., Leland, M., Kaplan, J., Piedra, P.A., Zhou, H., Parks, R., Velji, R., Aguilar-Cordova, E., Wadsworth, S., Graham, F.L., Kochanek, S., Carey, K.D., Beaudet, A.L. Administration of helper-dependent adenoviral vectors and sequential delivery of different vector serotype for long-term liver-directed gene transfer in baboons. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA (Track II) 96:12816-12821 (1999).
Titles & Appointments
- Associate Professor of Medical & Molecular Genetics
- Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
- Associate Professor of Medical &
- Molecular Genetics
- Executive Committee Member, Indiana Diabetes Research Center
- Enrichment Core Co-Director, Indiana Diabetes Research Center
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Professional Organizations