The Role of the IGF/Insulin-IGFBP Axis in Normal Physiology and Disease

Life-Long Health". We discussed cutting-edge research on the fundamental roles of IGF and insulin in normal physiology and diseases particularly related to aging, cancer, and metabolic disorders. IGFs and insulin are conserved throughout evolution to mediate the effects of nutrition on growth, metabolism, and development, and hence play a significant role in health and disease over the lifespan. They modulate diverse aspects of cell function such as proliferation, differentiation, survival, and metabolism of most physiological systems in the body. The IGF family of ligands, receptors, and IGF binding proteins are frequently affected in many pathological conditions, such as growth failure, diabetes, cancer, and degenerative diseases, and therefore have become attractive therapeutic targets. This conference encompassed ground-breaking information regarding critical characteristics of the biology of the IGF/insulin family in both normal physiology and pathological states highlighting innovative methodologies and novel interactions (e.g., stem cell biology and the microbiome). We selected eight exciting topics presented at the GRC for this special issue on "The Role of the research that are necessary for future studies. From C. elegans to rhesus monkeys, it has been reported that suppression of insulin-like activity is associated with an increased life span. Together with other reports from this GRC, excessive induction of insulin-like activity can lead to cancer, and excessive attenuation leads to various diseases that are also problematic in an aging society, such as Alzheimers. These results clearly demonstrate the importance of regulating insulin-like activity to an appropriate range to maintain a lifetime of good health. This regulation is accomplished through ligand production, interaction with binding proteins, receptor expression, and signaling. The future mission of this research area is to elucidate how abnormalities in molecular signalling pathways utilized by the IGF axis correlate with the phenotype associated with pathological conditions, to develop preventive and therapeutic interventions, leading to higher quality resource animals and an increase in healthy life expectancy in humans. The IGFs are clearly relevant to all life phenomena and as such have attracted many researchers to the field from different backgrounds, highlighted by the varied and diverse presentations covering both normal physiology and disease. An IGF focus within a cross-disciplinary approach yields exciting, novel and groundbreaking discoveries that were presented at the GRC, and the participants all shared in the excitement. We are delighted for the broader community to provide a taste of this GRC in this special issue. The next GRC on the IGF and Insulin System in Physiology and Disease will be held in March 2023. We look forward to seeing you all there.IGF