Midtveisevaluering - Ranveig Seim Brekke

Ranveig Seim Brekke er tilknyttet Klinisk institutt 1. Veiledere er Karianne Fjeld, Anders Molven og Bente Berg Johansson.

Prosjekt

Mechanistic insights into pancreatic disorders: Biological implications of the hypervariable carboxyl ester lipase (CEL) protein

Abstract

Carboxyl ester lipase (CEL) is a digestive enzyme expressed by the acinar cells of the pancreas. The CEL gene contains 11 exons where the last exon includes a variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) domain. CEL is highly polymorphic, and diseases associated with this gene are mainly related to alterations of the VNTR region. CEL-HYB1 and CEL-INS are two gene variants suggested to be involved in pancreatitis and pancreas cancer, respectively. The aim of my thesis is to obtain a deeper understanding of how these variants act to cause pancreatic disease. To reach my goal, I am using both cell model systems, transgenic mice, and patient material.