News and Events at Alfaisal University

Mitochondrial Dynamics & Reactive Oxygen Species in Diabetes

Dr. Tianzheng Yu, an Associate Professor in the College of Medicine at Alfaisal University, gave a talk entitled “Mitochondrial Dynamics & Reactive Oxygen Species in Diabetes” as part of the Research Colloquium on Wednesday 28 October 2009. Mitochondrial production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in hyperglycemia is recognized as a major cause of clinical complications associated with diabetes and obesity. A total of 35 faculty, staff and students attended this informative event. Dr. Ali Khraibi, a Professor of Physiology in the same college, said that “this type of study is very important since it addresses one of the country’s strategic research areas, biotechnology/medical research, and will hopefully provide new ideas in the future development of better methods for treating diabetes.”

Dr. Yu obtained his M.D. degree from Hunan Medical University in China, and later held the position of Assistant Professor in the same institution. Following this, Dr. Yu did Postdoctoral work at Eastern Virginia Medical School, VA, USA. He was also a Fellow in the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Rochester in NY. Dr. Yu’s research interests are in the areas of cell biology of mitochondria, mitochondrial diseases, and renal and cardiovascular physiology.