# Body Weight Regulation Core

> **NIH NIH U2C** · VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $157,834

## Abstract

The purpose of the Body Weight Regulation Core (BWRC) will be to provide state-of-the-art
techniques to assess body weight regulation in the mouse, including the effects of body weight-
lowering strategies such as exercise, diet restriction, and bariatric surgery. The services
proposed by the BWRC have been exquisitely refined to make precise measurements and
perform sophisticated procedures. The indirect calorimetry system we employ is the most
advanced system available and yields exquisite behavioral details related to energy balance
(energy expenditure, physical activity, food intake, water intake) with high temporal resolution.
To complement whole body indirect calorimetry and exercise studies, we will offer high-
resolution assessment of mitochondrial respirometry and reactive oxygen species emissions at
the tissue, cell, and mitochondrial levels. This will allow the investigator to determine whether
differences in whole body energy balance are associated with mitochondrial dysfunction. The
BWRC will provide four distinct bariatric surgery procedures that closely mimic those performed
in humans: Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy, Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass (modified for the mouse),
Biliopancreatic Diversion and Biliary Diversion. These unique procedures allow the investigator
to address questions about gut function and the contribution of the gastrointestinal tract to
metabolic state. We also provide telemetry services for the assessment of cardiovascular
function in conscious free-roaming mouse. The close relationship that the BWRC will maintain
with the Metabolic Regulation Core will provide an extremely thorough phenotyping platform.
The BWRC will provide highly advanced technology to comprehensively phenotype body weight
regulation in mouse models.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9972940
- **Project number:** 5U2CDK059637-20
- **Recipient organization:** VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** KEVIN D NISWENDER
- **Activity code:** U2C (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $157,834
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** — → 2022-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9972940

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9972940, Body Weight Regulation Core (5U2CDK059637-20). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9972940. Licensed CC0.

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