Diabetes Research

Three Vanderbilt faculty members are diving into a "chicken-and-egg" problem of type 2 diabetes: Does the disease change beta-cell subtypes? Or do changes in the cells cause diabetes? Guoqiang Gu, Emily Hodges and Ken Lau have come up with a new method of studying the subtypes that can track them through different stages instead of just once when they're fully developed. "Thanks to this and other research, it may be possible to one day create a diet supplement for pregnancy that could reduce the risk of diabetes for babies," Gu said. Read More

The use of human pancreatic islets to conduct diabetes-related research has greatly expanded in recent years, and a Human Islet Phenotyping Program (HIPP) at Vanderbilt University Medical Center has been established to provide important islet data to investigators worldwide. Read More

Investigators in the Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center (VDRTC) and collaborators at Stanford University have discovered new insights into the molecular mechanisms of cell proliferation in juvenile human pancreatic islets, information that could lead to new treatments for diabetes. Read More

Lengthening sleep duration and reducing sleep disturbances in children with type 1 diabetes may improve diabetes outcomes and reduce parental stress. Read More

Charles Rawlinson “Rollo” Park, M.D., a pioneering diabetes researcher at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, died Saturday, May 7, at his home in Brentwood, just two months after celebrating his 100th birthday on March 2. Read More

The drug sildenafil, sold as Viagra and other brand names, improves insulin sensitivity in people at risk for diabetes, researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center reported. Sildenafil inhibits an enzyme called phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5), resulting in relaxation of smooth muscle, vasodilation and… Read More

In an observational study by researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, adults with type 2 diabetes who take insulin in addition to the recommended first-line drug therapy, metformin, had a 30 percent higher risk of heart attack, stroke or death when compared to similar patients who instead augment their metformin regimen with a sulfonylurea. Read More

The statistics are jarring. More than 25.8 million children and adults in the United States — 8.3 percent of the population — have diabetes. And predictions are that one in three people will have the chronic disease by 2050. Read More

The recent “Diabetes Day” symposium recognized two Vanderbilt trainees for their potential as future leaders in diabetes research and one longtime staff member for his service to the diabetes research community. Read More

Shelagh Mulvaney, Ph.D., assistant professor of Nursing, leads a national team of researchers, engineers and designers that recently landed a $1.8 million federal grant to identify new ways to teach critical problem-solving skills to teenagers with type 1 diabetes using an Internet and mobile phone-based system. Read More

A monitoring and alert system developed and implemented at Vanderbilt University Medical Center that prompts caregivers to check glucose levels for patients with diabetes while they are undergoing surgery has been found to help improve outcomes such as reduced abnormal glucose values, fewer surgical site infections and reduced hospital readmissions after surgery. Read More