Peter Arvan Lab

Our lab works to examine molecular mechanisms involved in the folding, trafficking, and targeting of newly-synthesized endocrine secretory proteins.

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Research

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Peter Arvan
Peter Arvan, MD, PhD
Principal Investigator

William K. and Delores S. Brehm Professor of Type 1 Diabetes Research
Professor of Internal Medicine and Molecular and Integrative Physiology

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Current Research
In the arvan Lab

Our projects currently concentrate on two cell types relevant to issues of health and disease:

1) Pancreatic beta cells that store insulin in secretory granules for release to the bloodstream in response to an increase in blood glucose or other secretagogues.

2) Thyroid epithelial cells that use thyroglobulin (Tg) as a precursor for iodination in the synthesis of thyroid hormone. In these cell types, the lab is particularly interested in protein interactions that allow the secretory pathway [comprising the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), Golgi complex, secretory vesicles, as well as organelles of the endosome-lysosome-autophagosome system] to optimize production of polypeptide-derived hormones.

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news
Proinsulin image
Health Lab
How Proinsulin Misfolding is a Prelude to Type 2 Diabetes
An innovative team at Michigan Medicine’s Arvan Lab reveals how proinsulin misfolding is a hallmark of prediabetes that can worsen the condition.
Microscope illustration
Health Lab
Researching Proinsulin Misfolding to Understand Diabetes
Researchers are studying endoplasmic reticulum associated degradation & how it corrects proinsulin misfolding. Learn more about ERAD and MIDY diabetes research.
Orange pancreas shown inside a blue body outline
Health Lab
Shining a Light on Pancreatic Insulin
A doctor from the University of Michigan Health System has developed a way to visualize stored insulin in the pancreas of a living creature.