The Obesity Research and Education Initiative (OREI) is proud to welcome two new faculty members, Dr. Julien Sebag in the Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics and the Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Research Center and Dr. Amy Sindler in the Department of Health and Human Physiology.

Dr. Julien Sebag is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics in the Carver College of Medicine, a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Research Center and a member of the Obesity Research and Education Initiative. He received his PhD in Pharmacology from the University of Rochester in 2008. In Dr. Hinkle’s laboratory, his work focused on the identification of the structure and the physiological role of the Melanocortin Receptor Accessory Protein 1 (MRAP1). Dr. Sebag then pursued a post-doctoral fellowship with Dr. Roger Cone in the department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics at Vanderbilt University. In Dr. Cone’s Laboratory, Dr. Sebag pursued his research on MRAP proteins and conducted a High Throughput Screening drug discovery program to identify positive allosteric modulators of the Melanocortin-4 receptor for the treatment of obesity. This program is still active and led to a collaboration between Dr. Cone, Dr. Sebag and GlaxoSmithKline. During his postdoctoral fellowship Dr. Sebag received a T32 award and an F32 (NRSA) grant. At the University of Iowa, Dr. Sebag’s research focuses on identifying new pathways involved in the control of energy homeostasis and discovering novel targets for the treatment of obesity and diabetes. A major focus will be the identification the mechanism of action and the homeostatic pathways regulated by the Melanocortin Receptor Accessory Protein 2 (MRAP2), a protein recently identified as critical for the maintenance of proper energy balance.

Dr. Amy Sindler is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health and Human Physiology in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and a member of the Obesity Research and Education Initiative at the University of Iowa. She earned her BS and MS in Exercise Physiology and PhD in Cellular and Integrative Physiology from West Virginia University in 2009. In Dr. Judy Muller-Delp’s laboratory her work determined the effects of aging and exercise training on oxidative stress and nitric oxide signaling on vascular endothelial function. Dr. Sindler completed post-doctoral training in the Integrative Physiology of Aging Laboratory with Dr. Doug Seals at the University of Colorado Boulder, where she was awarded a post-doctoral fellowship by the University of Colorado Aging Training Grant determining the efficacy of nitrite supplementation for reversing vascular dysfunction (i.e., large elastic artery stiffening and vascular endothelial dysfunction) with aging. Dr. Sindler’s current research program focuses on determining the role of aging and other age-related pathologies such as chronic kidney disease (CKD) on the progression of vascular dysfunction. In the Department of Health and Human Physiology Dr. Sindler’s laboratory will center on providing new insight into novel pathways involved in vascular dysfunction, including the role of impaired nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) bioavailability with aging, obesity and CKD.