معرفی
Clara B Peek, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics and the Department of Medicine (Endocrinology, Metabolism and Molecular Medicine) at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine. She leads the Peek Lab, which is affiliated with multiple research centers including the Simpson Querrey Center for Epigenetics, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Center for Diabetes and Metabolism.
Dr. Peek earned her PhD from Johns Hopkins University (2010) followed by postdoctoral training at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Endocrinology and Molecular Metabolism (2015).
Dr. Peek's research focuses on circadian biology and its intersection with metabolic pathways. Her laboratory investigates how circadian clocks impact nutrient-responsive regulatory pathways, particularly oxygen-sensing transcriptional networks. A key discovery identified the connection between skeletal muscle clocks and the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) pathway, which regulates circadian control of the hypoxic response and glucose metabolism. Her work aims to understand the interplay between hypoxic and circadian transcriptional pathways at genomic and nutrient-signaling levels, with applications to metabolic diseases including type-2 diabetes, vascular ischemia, and cancer.
Her recent publications demonstrate significant connections between circadian rhythms and metabolic health, with findings showing how circadian disruptions in muscles combined with poor diet contribute to diabetes development and how circadian clocks regulate muscle healing after injury. Her research also explores sex-specific mechanisms of glucocorticoid effects on muscle performance.
- Associate Editor, Science Advances (2021 - Present)
- Editorial Board Member, Frontiers in Physiology - Chronobiology Section (2020 - Present)
- Member, American Heart Association (2023 - Present)
- Member, ADA (2017 - Present)
- Member, AWIS (2014 - Present)
- Member, SRBR (2012 - Present)
Dr. Peek has consulting relationships with Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and participates in speaking, advising, and consulting activities for the company. Her laboratory continues to investigate fundamental connections between circadian biology and metabolic regulation, with the goal of identifying novel therapeutic targets for metabolic disorders, including research on how circadian clocks control insulin regulation and exercise response in muscles.
