Education

• Postdoctoral Fellow, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, 2016, Islet Biology and Inflammation
• PhD, University of Pittsburgh, 2009, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics
• BSc Hons, University College Cork, Ireland, 2004, Biochemistry

Research Interests

Dr. Burke's graduate research focused on understanding how nutritional signals acting on pancreatic beta cells alter transcriptional patterns as a mechanism to change cellular function. Her post-doctoral research focused on understanding how inflammatory signals arising from immune cells altered beta cell function and developing novel strategies to attenuate pancreatic islet inflammation that arises during the progression to diabetes. In 2016, Dr. Burke established her independent laboratory at PBRC as an Assistant Professor and Director of the Immunogenetics Laboratory. In 2023, she became an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Louisiana State University. The overarching hypothesis of the Burke Lab is that lipid oxidation by both peroxisomes and mitochondria is required for glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS), and that defects in lipid handling within either organelle impairs β-cell insulin secretion. To address these questions, Dr. Burke’s laboratory integrates multiple experimental systems, including in vitro cell lines, in vivo mouse studies, human tissues, and comprehensive multi-omics approaches to define how changes in lipid handling alter endocrine function. 

Department: Immunogenetics

Selected Publications

1. High-protein diet prevents glucocorticoid-induced fat mass accumulation and hyperglycemia.  Susan J. Burke, Heidi M. Batdorf, Maggie P. Ducote, Thomas M. Martin, Michael D. Karlstad, Robert C. Noland, Sujoy Ghosh, Christopher D. Morrison, and J. Jason Collier.  International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2025 Apr 29;26(9):4212
   
   
2. Pancreatic expression of CPT1A is essential for whole body glucose homeostasis by supporting glucose-stimulated insulin secretion.
   Ducote MP, Cothern CR, Batdorf HM, Fontenot MS, Martin TM, Iftesum M, Gartia MR, Noland RC, Burk DH, Ghosh S, Burke SJ. J Biol Chem. 2025 Feb;301(2):108187. doi: 10.1016/j.jbc.2025.108187. Epub 2025 Jan 13. PMID: 39814231
   
   
3. Accelerated onset of diabetes in non-obese diabetic mice fed a refined high-fat diet.
   Batdorf HM, Lawes LL, Cassagne GA, Fontenot MS, Harvey IC, Richardson JT, Burk DH, Dupuy SD, Karlstad MD, Salbaum JM, Staszkiewicz J, Beyl R, Ghosh S, Burke SJ, Collier JJ. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2024 Jun;26(6):2158-2166. doi: 10.1111/dom.15522. Epub 2024 Mar 4. PMID: 38433703
   
   
4.  From pre-clinical efficacy to promising clinical trials that delay Type 1 Diabetes. J. Jason Collier, Daniel S. Hsia, Susan J. Burke. (2024)  Pharmacological Research. Oct:208:107342

NCBI Bibliography