Daniel F Vatner, MD, PhD
Research & Publications
Biography
News
Research Summary
Dr. Vatner’s research focuses on several aspects of triglyceride metabolism in the setting of insulin resistance and/or nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Altered substrate flux appears to be the unifying principle driving dysregulated triglyceride synthesis in insulin resistant subjects; both synthesis by esterification of pre-formed fatty acids from adipose lipolysis and diet, and fatty acid synthesis by de novo lipogenesis from smaller molecules (carbohydrate, amino acids, lactate, citrate). Studies of triglyceride synthesis are performed in multiple rodent models (mouse and rat) of metabolic dysregulation, and in humans with multiple insulin resistance phenotypes. Additionally, we are interested in how alterations in normal lipid metabolism can play a role in the transition between NAFLD and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Through these basic studies of metabolism, we hope to inform future approaches to prevention and treatment of comorbidities of the metabolic syndrome, including addressing excess risk for atherosclerotic vascular disease and NASH.
Coauthors
Selected Publications
- Humanized mouse liver reveals endothelial control of essential hepatic metabolic functionsKaffe E, Roulis M, Zhao J, Qu R, Sefik E, Mirza H, Zhou J, Zheng Y, Charkoftaki G, Vasiliou V, Vatner D, Mehal W, AlcHepNet, Kluger Y, Flavell R. Humanized mouse liver reveals endothelial control of essential hepatic metabolic functions. Cell 2023, 186: 3793-3809.e26. PMID: 37562401, PMCID: PMC10544749, DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.07.017.
- Rising NAFLD and metabolic severity during the Sars‐CoV‐2 pandemic among children with obesity in the United StatesSlusher A, Hu P, Samuels S, Tokoglu F, Lat J, Li Z, Alguard M, Strober J, Vatner D, Shabanova V, Caprio S. Rising NAFLD and metabolic severity during the Sars‐CoV‐2 pandemic among children with obesity in the United States. Obesity 2023, 31: 1383-1391. PMID: 36694381, PMCID: PMC10186584, DOI: 10.1002/oby.23728.
- Insulin increases placental triglyceride as a potential mechanism for fetal adiposity in maternal obesityAnam AK, Cooke KM, Dratver MB, O'Bryan JV, Perley LE, Guller SM, Hwang JJ, Taylor HS, Goedeke L, Kliman HJ, Vatner DF, Flannery CA. Insulin increases placental triglyceride as a potential mechanism for fetal adiposity in maternal obesity. Molecular Metabolism 2022, 64: 101574. PMID: 35970449, PMCID: PMC9440306, DOI: 10.1016/j.molmet.2022.101574.
- Hepatic Insulin Resistance Is Not Pathway Selective in Humans With Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease.Ter Horst KW, Vatner DF, Zhang D, Cline GW, Ackermans MT, Nederveen AJ, Verheij J, Demirkiran A, van Wagensveld BA, Dallinga-Thie GM, Nieuwdorp M, Romijn JA, Shulman GI, Serlie MJ. Hepatic Insulin Resistance Is Not Pathway Selective in Humans With Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. Diabetes Care 2020, 44: 489-498. PMID: 33293347, PMCID: PMC7818337, DOI: 10.2337/dc20-1644.
- Adipose glucocorticoid action influences whole‐body metabolism via modulation of hepatic insulin actionAbulizi A, Camporez JP, Jurczak MJ, Høyer KF, Zhang D, Cline GW, Samuel VT, Shulman GI, Vatner DF. Adipose glucocorticoid action influences whole‐body metabolism via modulation of hepatic insulin action. The FASEB Journal 2019, 33: 8174-8185. PMID: 30922125, PMCID: PMC6593882, DOI: 10.1096/fj.201802706r.
- Ectopic lipid deposition mediates insulin resistance in adipose specific 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 transgenic miceAbulizi A, Camporez JP, Zhang D, Samuel VT, Shulman GI, Vatner DF. Ectopic lipid deposition mediates insulin resistance in adipose specific 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 transgenic mice. Metabolism 2018, 93: 1-9. PMID: 30576689, PMCID: PMC6401251, DOI: 10.1016/j.metabol.2018.12.003.
- Absence of ANGPTL4 in adipose tissue improves glucose tolerance and attenuates atherogenesisAryal B, Singh AK, Zhang X, Varela L, Rotllan N, Goedeke L, Chaube B, Camporez JP, Vatner DF, Horvath TL, Shulman GI, Suárez Y, Fernández-Hernando C. Absence of ANGPTL4 in adipose tissue improves glucose tolerance and attenuates atherogenesis. JCI Insight 2018, 3: e97918. PMID: 29563332, PMCID: PMC5926923, DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.97918.
- Angptl8 antisense oligonucleotide improves adipose lipid metabolism and prevents diet-induced NAFLD and hepatic insulin resistance in rodentsVatner DF, Goedeke L, Camporez JG, Lyu K, Nasiri AR, Zhang D, Bhanot S, Murray SF, Still CD, Gerhard GS, Shulman GI, Samuel VT. Angptl8 antisense oligonucleotide improves adipose lipid metabolism and prevents diet-induced NAFLD and hepatic insulin resistance in rodents. Diabetologia 2018, 61: 1435-1446. PMID: 29497783, PMCID: PMC5940564, DOI: 10.1007/s00125-018-4579-1.
- Regulation of hepatic glucose metabolism in health and diseasePetersen MC, Vatner DF, Shulman GI. Regulation of hepatic glucose metabolism in health and disease. Nature Reviews Endocrinology 2017, 13: 572-587. PMID: 28731034, PMCID: PMC5777172, DOI: 10.1038/nrendo.2017.80.
- Hepatic Diacylglycerol-Associated Protein Kinase Cε Translocation Links Hepatic Steatosis to Hepatic Insulin Resistance in HumansHorst K, Gilijamse PW, Versteeg RI, Ackermans MT, Nederveen AJ, la Fleur SE, Romijn JA, Nieuwdorp M, Zhang D, Samuel VT, Vatner DF, Petersen KF, Shulman GI, Serlie MJ. Hepatic Diacylglycerol-Associated Protein Kinase Cε Translocation Links Hepatic Steatosis to Hepatic Insulin Resistance in Humans. Cell Reports 2017, 19: 1997-2004. PMID: 28591572, PMCID: PMC5469939, DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2017.05.035.