Dean Rodney J. Brown of the Brigham Young University College of Life Sciences has announced the appointment of William W. Winder as chair of the Physiology and Developmental Biology Department.
He replaces former chair James P. Porter, who was named associate dean of the college Sept. 24 and has been serving in that position as well as department chair since that time
Winder obtained his bachelor and doctoral degrees from BYU. He then spent eight years doing research on muscle metabolism at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. In 1979 he moved to the University of South Dakota School of Medicine where he taught physiology to medical students and graduate students for three years. He joined the BYU faculty in 1982.
His current research focuses on an enzyme in muscle called AMP-activated protein kinase, which is activated when a muscle contracts. It then stimulates glucose uptake and fat burning to keep pace with the increased energy needs that accompany contraction. This enzyme has become a target for development of pharmaceuticals for prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes.
For more information, contact Lonnie Riggs at (801) 422-2007.
Writer: Lonnie Riggs
