SMARTbiomed seminar - From obesity GWAS to central mechanism

Friday, 22 May 2026, 9am to 10am

Abstract: Genome-wide association studies have identified thousands of obesity loci, yet translating these into biological mechanisms remains a major bottleneck. In this talk, I will present a framework for variant-to-function (V2F) studies in obesity, centered on the hypothalamus as one the brain where genetic evidence converges. I will propose tiered evidence criteria across human model systems, reverse and forward genetics, and phenotyping assays, and discuss how tools including single-cell CRISPR screens, iPSC-derived hypothalamic neurons, and sequence-to-function deep learning models can be integrated into a closed-loop discovery paradigm – where human genetic evidence both guides and benchmarks experimental prioritisation.

Bio: Dr. Tune H. Pers (h-index 56, ORCID 0000-0003-0207-4831) heads a research group at the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, University of Copenhagen, and is affiliated with the Broad Institute. His lab integrates human genetics, single-cell genomics, and machine learning to map how obesity- and diabetes-associated genetic variants act through specific cell populations in the brain – a variant-to-function approach focused on hypothalamic and hindbrain circuits regulating energy balance. Key contributions include identifying amylin-responsive hindbrain neurons mediating obesity drug responses (Ludwig et al., Nature Metabolism 2021; Ludwig et al., Nature Metabolism 2026, in press), developing computational tools for linking GWAS signals to cell types (Timshel et al., eLife 2020), and demonstrating central mechanisms of FGF1-mediated glycemic control (Bentsen, Rausch et al., Nature Communications 2021). Selected honours: Leif Groop Award for obesity and diabetes research (2024), Sapere Aude Starting Grant (2015), Young Investigator Award, Danish Diabetes Academy (2019).

Series: SMARTbiomed Seminar series

Venue: Big Data Institute - Seminar rooms - Seminar rooms Big Data Institute Old Road Campus Oxford Oxfordshire OX3 7LF United Kingdom

Department: Psychiatry (Department)

Organiser: Naomi Wray

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