# Molecular functions of human zinc transporter-8 in pancreatic beta cells

> **NIH NIH R01** · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $497,594

## Abstract

Abstract
Zinc is a ubiquitous biological metal found in about 10% of the eukaryotic proteome. The spatiotemporal zinc
dynamics provides crucial cellular signaling opportunities, but also challenges intracellular zinc homeostasis with
broad disease implications. Zinc transporters play a central role in regulating cellular zinc balance and subcellular
zinc distributions. Current biochemistry of zinc transporters is largely based on purified proteins in test-tubes.
However, the molecular functions of zinc transporters in mammalian cells are cell context dependent, vary with
subcellular locations and regulated by pathophysiologic stimuli. At present, we have no knowledge of in-cell
functions of endogenous zinc transporters at the molecular level. To fill in this knowledge vacuum, we will use
an islet-specific zinc transporter ZnT8 and its host cells, the insulin-producing pancreatic β-cells as a mammalian
model system to address two questions of the greatest importance to zinc biology: (i) how ZnT8-mediated zinc
transport is compartmentalized at the correct subcellular locations to perform intended tasks, (ii) how the
biosynthetic burden of ZnT8 is managed by the protein quality control network that ensures clearance of
terminally damaged ZnT8 under cell stress. The second question is not directly related to zinc transport, but has
a profound impact on β-cell biology with implications in pathogenesis of type-2 diabetes. Our prior studies have
uncovered functional coupling of ZnT8 and insulin in two critical cellular processes, glucose-stimulated insulin
secretion and inflammation-induced unfolded protein response in the endoplasmic reticulum. The proposed
research will characterize subcellular locations and protein levels of endogenous ZnT8 in response to metabolic
and inflammatory stress (Aim-1), identify regulators of ZnT8 subcellular functions, and elucidate their mechanism
of actions (Aim-2). The proposed research will reveal unprecedented molecular details of ZnT8 subcellular
functions in molecular and cellular processes that impact cell biology of host cells, leading to a new paradigm of
in-cell molecular functions of zinc transporters in mammalian cells.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10122050
- **Project number:** 1R01DK125746-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Dax Fu
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $497,594
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-01-01 → 2024-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10122050

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10122050, Molecular functions of human zinc transporter-8 in pancreatic beta cells (1R01DK125746-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10122050. Licensed CC0.

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