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Diabetes foundations collaborate for islet transplantation research

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The Foundation for Diabetes Research will contribute $250,000 to the American Diabetes Research Foundation’s effort to support islet transplant research, according to a foundation press release.

The grant, part of a collaborative effort between the two research organizations, will support research on how to better protect islets during and after transplantation, a promising research effort aimed at reducing complications associated with living with type 1 diabetes and improving quality of life.

"Cell replacement therapies have the potential to be superior to insulin injections in managing diabetes, providing better glucose control with reduced daily management burden for people with type 1 diabetes," Tamara Darsow, PhD, vice president for research programs at the American Diabetes Association, said in a press release. "The promise of an unlimited source of beta cells from rapidly evolving stem cell technology is coming closer to reality, creating an even greater need for research on how to improve the survival of insulin-secreting cells post-transplantation."

The Foundation for Diabetes Research was founded in 1999 with a mission to support research aimed at a cure for type 1 diabetes and prevention of its severe complications.

Qizhi Tang , PhD , an associate professor of surgery at the University of California, San Francisco, is the lead researcher for the collaboratively supported grant. Success in the field of islet transplantation has been limited, the foundation noted, because more than 80% of islets die within days of transplantation.

Through the grant, Tang will test ways to improve islet survival after transplantation, potentially allowing for better control of blood glucose for patients.

"Our organization is excited to collaborate with the American Diabetes Association," Gary Meininger, MD, chair of the Foundation for Diabetes Research Grant Committee, said in a statement. "It is rewarding when our foundation's mission to advance research towards a cure for type 1 diabetes is amplified through such a unified effort.”