Aaron Cox, Ph.D.
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Aaron Cox, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Positions
- Assistant Professor
-
Medicine
Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, TX US
Addresses
- BCM-Alkek Building for Biomedical Research (Lab)
-
One Baylor Plaza
Houston, TX 77030
United States
Education
- Postdoctoral Fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine
- 01/2019 - Houston
- Obesity, Metabolism, and Inflammation
- Postdoctoral Fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine
- 02/2018 - Houston
- Beta Cell Biology
- PhD from University of Western Ontario
- 06/2011 - London, ON Canada
- Physiology
- BSc from University of Western Ontario
- 06/2004 - London, ON Canada
- Physiology
Professional Interests
- Islet Biology
- Type 1 & 2 Diabetes
- Obesity & Insulin Resistance
- Immune Cell Metabolism
Professional Statement
Diabetes is marked by a relative or absolute deficiency of insulin-producing beta cells. Strategies to expand beta cell mass have significant potential to restore glucose control in diabetes patients. Beta cells demonstrate tremendous capacity to proliferate during obesity, although the mechanisms are unclear. We are focused on uncovering the hormonal and metabolic signals that drive beta cell expansion in obesity. In particular, we are examining the central and islet specific mechanisms by which leptin regulates beta cells proliferation. Our goal is to identify novel targets for the expansion of endogenous beta cells in patients with diabetes. We are employing new genetic mouse models, metabolic phenotyping, and molecular approaches to examine the effects of obesity-derived signals on beta cells.Websites
Selected Publications
- Cox AR, Masschelin PM, Saha PK, Felix JB, Sharp R, Lian Z, Xia Y, Chernis N, Bader DA, Kim KH, Li X, Yoshino J, Li X, Sun Z, Wu H, Coarfa C, Moore DD, Klein S, Sun K, Hartig SM "The Rheumatoid Arthritis Drug Auranofin Lowers Leptin Levels and Exerts Anti-Diabetic Effects in Obese Mice." Cell Metabolism. 2022 Dec;34(12):1932-1946. Pubmed PMID: 36243005
- Hartig SM, Cox AR "Paracrine signaling in islet function and survival." Journal of Molecular Medicine. 2020 Apr;98(4):451-467. Pubmed PMID: 32067063
- Cox AR, Chernis N, Masschelin PM, Hartig SM "Immune cells gate white adipose tissue expansion." Endocrinology. 2019 Jul;160(7):1645-58. Pubmed PMID: 31107528
- Cox AR, Lam CJ, Rankin MM, Rios JS, Chavez J, Bonnyman CW, King KB, Wells RA, Anthony D, Tu JX, Kim JJ, Li C, Kushner JA "Incretin Therapies Do Not Expand beta-cell Mass or Alter Pancreatic Histology in Young Male Mice.." Endocrinology. 2017 Jun;158(6):1701-14. Pubmed PMID: 28323942
- Cox AR, Lam CJ, Rankin MM, King KA, Chen P, Martinez R, Li C, Kushner JA "Extreme obesity induces massive beta cell expansion through self-renewal and does not alter the beta cell lineage." Diabetologia. 2016 Jun;59(6):1231-41. Pubmed PMID: 27003683
- Cox AR, Barrandon O, Cai EP, Rios JS, Chavez J, Bonnyman CW, Lam CJ, Yi P, Melton DA, Kushner JA "Resolving discrepant findings on ANGPTL8 in beta cell proliferation: a collaborative approach to resolving the betatrophin controversy.." Plos One. 2016 Jul; Pubmed PMID: 27410263
- Masschelin PM, Cox AR, Chernis N, Hartig SM "The Impact of Oxidative Stress on Adipose Tissue Energy Balance." Frontiers in Physiology. 2020 Jan;10:1638. Pubmed PMID: 32038305
- Chernis N, Masschelin P, Cox AR, Hartig SM "Bisphenol AF promotes inflammation in human white adipocytes." Am J Physiol Cell Physiol. 2020 Jan;318(1):C63-C72. Pubmed PMID: 31596606
- Zhang L, Sosinowski T, Cox AR, Cepeda JR, Sekhar NS, Hartig SM, Miao D, Yu L, Pietropaolo M, Davidson HW. "Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells targeting a pathogenic MHC class II:peptide complex modulate the progression of autoimmune diabetes." J Autoimmun. 2019 Jan;96:50-58. Pubmed PMID: 30122420
- Vonberg AD, Acevedo-Calado M, Cox AR, Pietropaolo SL, Gianani R, Lundy SK, Pietropaolo M "CD19+IgM+ cells demonstrate enhanced therapeutic efficacy in type 1 diabetes mellitus." JCI Insight. 2018 Dec 6;3(23) Pubmed PMID: 30518692
- Cox AR, Kushner JA. "Area IV Knockout Reveals How Pdx1 Is Regulated in Postnatal β-Cell Development." Diabetes. 2017 Nov;66(11):2738-2740. Pubmed PMID: 29061659
- Lam CJ, Chatterjee A, Shen E, Cox AR, Kushner JA "Low Level Insulin Content Within Abundant Non-Beta Islet Endocrine Cells in Long-Standing Type 1 Diabetes." Diabetes. 2018 Dec 14; Pubmed PMID: 30552110
- Lam CJ, Cox AR, Jacobson DR, Rankin MM, Kushner JA "Highly Proliferative α-Cell-Related Islet Endocrine Cells in Human Pancreata." Diabetes. 2018 Apr;67(4):674-686. Pubmed PMID: 29326366
- Lam CJ, Jacobson DR, Rankin MM, Cox AR, Kushner JA "Beta-cells persist in T1D pancreata without evidence for ongoing beta-cell turnover or neogenesis.." J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2017 Aug;102(8):2647-59. Pubmed PMID: 28323930
- Cox AR, Lam CJ, Bonnyman CW, Chavez J, Rios JS, Kushner JA "ANGPTL8/Betatrophin overexpression does not increase beta cell proliferation in mice.." Diabetologia. 2015 Jul;58(7):1523-31. Pubmed PMID: 25917759
- Shields EJ, Lam CJ, Cox AR, Rankin MM, Van Winkle TJ, Hess RS, Kushner JA "Extreme beta-cell deficiency in pancreata of dogs with canine diabetes.." Plos One. 2015 Jun;10(6) Pubmed PMID: 26057531
- Cox AR, Beamish CA, Carter DE, Arany EJ, Hill DJ "Cellular mechanisms underlying failed beta cell regeneration in offspring of protein restricted pregnant mice.." Exp Biol Med (Maywood). 2013 Oct;238(10):1147-59. Pubmed PMID: 23986224
- Cox AR, Gottheil SK, Arany EJ, Hill DJ: "The effects of low protein exposure during gestation on mouse pancreatic development and beta cell regeneration.." Pediatr Res. 2010 Jul;68(1):16-22. Pubmed PMID: 20386490
- He Y, Brouwers B...Cox AR, ...Hartig SM, Liao L, Xu J, Barroso I, Mokrosinski J, Elmquist JK, Xu Y, Farooqi IS "Human Loss-of-Function Variants in the Serotonin 2C Receptor Associated with Obesity and Maladaptive Behavior." Nat Med. 2022 Dec;28(12):2537-2546. Pubmed PMID: 36536256
Funding
- Leptin regulation of beta cell proliferation - #1R56DK128098 (07/18/2022 - 06/30/2023) Grant funding from NIH NIDDK
- The goal of this award is to generate preliminary data to support observations that leptin regulates pancreatic islet delta cell function.
- Novel Leptin-Islet Signaling Pathway Regulates Beta Cell Function and Proliferation - #PR220954 (01/02/2023 - 12/31/2024) Grant funding from DoD PRMRP Discovery Award
- The goal of this project is to understand how leptin regulates islet function and beta cell proliferation.
- GABP is a novel regulator of beta cell metabolism and proliferation - #R03DK135458 (05/01/2023 - 04/30/2025) NIH NIDDK
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