Dr. Streamson Chua's group is interested in genetic contribution to the chronic disease of obesity, diabetes, and diabetes complications. One interest is in developing an understanding of the various functions of leptin responsive neurons as they relate to ingestion, control of body composition, metabolism, and reproduction. A second interest is to dissect the genetic contribution to the susceptibility/resistance to complications of long term hyperglycemia, particularly effects on the endocrine pancreas and the kidney.

Background
Before coming to Einstein in 2005, Dr. Streamson Chua was a member of the group of Dr. Jules Hirsch and Dr. Rudolph Leibel at the Rockefeller University, where he participated in efforts to understand the genetics of obesity. He then joined the faculty of Columbia-Presbyterian Medical School as an associate professor, continuing his work on the function of the hormone leptin that influences obesity and diabetes. Currently, he is pursuing research on genes that are linked to increased susceptibility to obesity and diabetic complications, particularly beta cell loss and nephropathy. Dr. Chua received his bachelor's degree from Johns Hopkins University, and then earned a combined M.D.-Ph.D. at Columbia University. He completed a one-year internship at New York Hospital and then undertook a post-doctoral fellowship in pediatric endocrinology to clone the gene for the steroid-producing enzyme, 11 beta hydroxylase.

• Iqbal NJ, Lu Z, Liu SM, Schwartz GJ, Chua S Jr, Zhu L. Cyclin-dependent kinase 4 is a preclinical target for diet-induced obesity. JCI Insight. 2018 Sep 6;3(17). pii: 123000. doi: 10.1172/jci.insight.123000. eCollection 2018 Sep 6. PubMed PMID: 30185666; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6171799.
• Jeong JH, Lee DK, Liu SM, Chua SC Jr, Schwartz GJ, Jo YH. Activation of temperature-sensitive TRPV1-like receptors in ARC POMC neurons reduces food intake. PLoS Biol. 2018 Apr 24;16(4):e2004399. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.2004399. eCollection 2018 Apr. PubMed PMID: 29689050; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5915833.
• Liu S, Marcelin G, Blouet C, Jeong JH, Jo YH, Schwartz GJ, Chua S Jr. A gut-brain axis regulating glucose metabolism mediated by bile acids and competitive fibroblast growth factor actions at the hypothalamus. Mol Metab. 2018 Feb;8:37-50. doi: 10.1016/j.molmet.2017.12.003. Epub 2017 Dec 9. PubMed PMID: 29290621; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5985052.
• Zhang Y, Chua S Jr. Leptin Function and Regulation. Compr Physiol. 2017 Dec 12;8(1):351-369. doi: 10.1002/cphy.c160041. Review. PubMed PMID: 29357132.
• Jeong JH, Woo YJ, Chua S Jr, Jo YH. Single-Cell Gene Expression Analysis of Cholinergic Neurons in the Arcuate Nucleus of the Hypothalamus. PLoS One. 2016 Sep 9;11(9):e0162839. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0162839. eCollection 2016. PubMed PMID: 27611685; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5017726.
• Sachdev S, Wang Q, Billington C, Connett J, Ahmed L, Inabnet W, Chua S, Ikramuddin S, Korner J. FGF 19 and Bile Acids Increase Following Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass but Not After Medical Management in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes. Obes Surg. 2016 May;26(5):957-65. doi: 10.1007/s11695-015-1834-0. PubMed PMID: 26259981; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4751075.
• Jeong JH, Lee DK, Blouet C, Ruiz HH, Buettner C, Chua S Jr, Schwartz GJ, Jo YH. Cholinergic neurons in the dorsomedial hypothalamus regulate mouse brown adipose tissue metabolism. Mol Metab. 2015 Apr 11;4(6):483-92. doi: 10.1016/j.molmet.2015.03.006. eCollection 2015 Jun. PubMed PMID: 26042202; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4443291.
• Marcelin G, Jo YH, Li X, Schwartz GJ, Zhang Y, Dun NJ, Lyu RM, Blouet C, Chang JK, Chua S Jr. Central action of FGF19 reduces hypothalamic AGRP/NPY neuron activity and improves glucose metabolism. Mol Metab. 2013 Oct 23;3(1):19-28. doi: 10.1016/j.molmet.2013.10.002. eCollection 2014 Feb. PubMed PMID: 24567901; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3929918.
• Marcelin G, Liu SM, Schwartz GJ, Chua SC Jr. Identification of a loss-of-function mutation in Ube2l6 associated with obesity resistance. Diabetes. 2013 Aug;62(8):2784-95. doi: 10.2337/db12-1054. Epub 2013 Apr 4. PubMed PMID: 23557705; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3717837.