J. Purves
Duke University, NC·Physiology
Bladder problems are the most common complication of diabetes, affecting up to 87% of patients. Yet even strict blood sugar control does not prevent them, and no specific treatments exist.
- Fields
Physiology
Neuroscience
Medicine & Clinical Research
- Topics
diabetic bladder dysfunction
diabetes
Akita mice
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through Apr 2031
What they work on
- Define the mechanisms behind the loss of Aδ-fibers, the nerves that sense bladder fullness, and the sprouting of C-fibers, linked to pain and overactivity, in female and male Akita diabetic mice.
- Test whether necroptosis, a programmed form of cell death, in Schwann cells that support nerves causes nerves to retract from the bladder wall and underlies bladder underactivity in male Akita mice.
- Assess how well the Akita model reflects human disease by examining diabetic changes in nerve supply in human bladder samples.
- Examine a polygenic mouse model of type 2 diabetes to test whether the same bladder nerve changes occur across diabetes types.
More about the research
Patients' symptoms also vary widely, from an overactive bladder to one that empties poorly. This project asks how inflammation and nerve damage combine to produce these different forms of diabetic bladder dysfunction (DBD), and why they differ between males and females.
Why it matters
Diabetic bladder dysfunction affects most people with diabetes and currently has no specific therapy. By identifying the molecular pathways behind the overactive and underactive forms, this work could point to new treatment targets. Examples include blocking C-fiber sprouting to curb overactivity, or targeting the necroptosis pathway to combat underactivity.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
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The school
Duke University: 61 labs on PI Pages, $1.6B a year on research, 417 research doctorates a year.
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