Current News

2009-10

  • Generic Drug for Type 2 Diabetes Passes Next Clinical Hurdle:  BOSTON, Mass. – March 16, 2010 – Clinical studies of a generic drug called salsalate, widely prescribed for arthritis, now provide promising early results that it may be useful for the treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes as well. Salsalate is an atypical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent that is chemically similar to aspirin but a bit easier on the stomach. In a three-month trial of people with type 2 diabetes that was led by Joslin Diabetes Center researchers, those who took the drug showed significantly improved blood glucose levels.
  • Clinical Trial Compares Leading-Edge Treatments for Obesity and Diabetes:  BOSTON, Mass. – February 25, 2010 – Obesity is a major contributing factor to type 2 diabetes, a disease affecting more than 20 million people in the United States. For those who are overweight and have type 2 diabetes, weight loss lowers blood sugar levels and leads to improved health and better quality of life. However, it is difficult to lose weight and keep it off.
  • Joslin Study Finds Insulin Regulates Beta Cell Function in Healthy Humans :  BOSTON, Mass. – February 15, 2010 – In type 2 diabetes, which is occurring at alarming rates, the hormone insulin does not work effectively to lower blood sugars and patients also do not make enough insulin. These two processes have been widely considered as separate. However, a surprising discovery was made by Joslin Diabetes Center researchers in animal models of diabetes: insulin is important in regulating its own production. Confirming this discovery, Joslin clinical scientists have now gone on to show that when blood sugar levels rise in healthy people, insulin signals the cells that make insulin to increase their production.
  • Blood will tell old stem cells how to act young:  BOSTON, Mass. – January 28, 2010 - As you age, your blood ages. Deep in your bone marrow, blood stem cells keep churning out your blood cells, but the mix of blood cell types goes awry, making you more prone to disease. Joslin Diabetes Center scientists now have demonstrated that in old mice exposed to certain proteins that are present in blood from young mice, old blood stem cells begin to act like young ones—and this process is driven by signals from another type of cell nearby in the bone.
  • Beta cells need key protein to divide and conquer diabetes:  BOSTON, Mass. – January 26, 2010 – In people who put on a lot of weight, or whose bodies start developing the inability to use insulin effectively that leads toward type 2 diabetes, the pancreas typically ramps up its supply of insulin-generating “beta” cells—at least in part by replication of existing beta cells. Researchers at Joslin Diabetes Center and their colleagues now have identified a cell-cycle protein that is essential for beta-cell replication to respond successfully to insulin resistance. The finding may point toward eventual therapies for preventing or treating type 2 diabetes.
  • Joslin Diabetes Center and dLife form new online partnership:  BOSTON – January 26, 2010 – joslin.org, the Internet site for Harvard-affiliated Joslin Diabetes Center, the world’s preeminent diabetes research and clinical care organization, and dLife.com, the leading online community for people living with diabetes, today announced a new online partnership. dLife will host a resource page on its web site featuring the clinical and research information from Joslin. Joslin will host on its website food and cooking videos from dLife’s award-winning TV show dLifeTV as well as links to relevant information on dLife.com.
  • Relieving Stress on Beta Cells May Aid in Diabetes:  BOSTON, Mass. – December 23, 2009 - Cells in your body are constantly churning out poisonous forms of oxygen (oxidants) and mopping them up with a countervailing force of proteins and chemicals (anti-oxidants). This balancing act of oxidative stress is particularly likely to go haywire in beta cells, the insulin-producing cells that malfunction and then start to die off in people with diabetes. Scientists at Joslin Diabetes Center now have found that a relatively little-studied enzyme plays a central role in defending beta cells against oxidants, but is damaged by the high levels of blood glucose produced in diabetes.
  • Joslin Wins Spot on Discover Magazine’s Top 100 List:  BOSTON – December 8, 2009 – Joslin Diabetes Center researchers have been honored by Discover Magazine in its annual Top 100 list of major scientific accomplishments, for showing that adult humans retain a type of “good” fat previously believed to be present only in babies and children.
  • In Type 2 Diabetes, Mitochondrial Damage Kills Insulin-Producing Cells:  BOSTON - November 24, 2009 - Over time, patients with type 2 diabetes lose insulin-producing cells, a difficulty that aggravates their disease. Researchers at Joslin Diabetes Center now have identified a mechanism that triggers the problem, giving a chance to find targets for drugs to protect these crucial cells.
  • Joslin Finds New Drug Targets for Diabetes Eye Complications:  BOSTON – November 1, 2009 – In diabetes patients, high blood glucose levels can end up killing certain cells in the eyes and kidneys, which is why diabetes is the leading cause of adult blindness and of kidney failure. Years ago, scientists identified one main route for this destruction—high glucose produces oxidative stress through the NF-kB molecular pathway—but success has been elusive for drugs targeting that pathway. Researchers at Joslin Diabetes Center now have clarified the complications story by detecting a second, independent pathway, which offers new targets for preventing and treating diabetic eye disease.
  • Joslin Study Identifies Gene Linked to Rare Form of Diabetes:  BOSTON – Augus 10, 2009 – Researchers at the Joslin Diabetes Center have linked another gene to a rare form of diabetes, a finding that could prove beneficial to those with the more common type 2 diabetes.
  • Joslin Study Links High Glutamate Levels in Brain with Depression, Low Cognitive Function:  BOSTON – August 3, 2009 – Researchers at the Joslin Diabetes Center and several other institutions have for the first time linked high levels of glutamate – a neurotransmitter in the brain produced from glucose – in people with type 1 diabetes to symptoms of depression and lower levels of cognitive performance.
  • Joslin Diabetes Center President and CEO Ranch C. Kimball to Step Down :  BOSTON – May 29, 2009 – Joslin Diabetes Center, the world’s preeminent diabetes research and clinical care organization, announced today that its President and CEO Ranch C. Kimball will step down by the end of August. Kimball has been widely credited with improving the overall health and fiscal stability of the world-renowned organization.
  • Statement from Joslin Diabetes Center Regarding Nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to Supreme Court :  BOSTON – May 27, 2009 – The Joslin Diabetes Center is pleased that the Obama Administration has appointed a person with type 1 diabetes for nomination to the Supreme Court of the United States.
  • Joslin Diabetes Center Names Boston Celtics Star Ray Allen to Board of Trustees :  BOSTON – May 18, 2009 – Joslin Diabetes Center today announced that it has appointed Boston Celtics star guard Ray Allen to its Board of Trustees. Allen is the father of a child with type 1 diabetes.
  • Lloyd Paul Aiello, M.D., Ph.D., of Joslin Diabetes Center Named ARVO 2009 Fellow:  BOSTON – April 29, 2009 – The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) is honored to announce this year’s inaugural class of distinguished Fellows. Lloyd Paul Aiello, M.D., PhD, head of the Joslin Section on Eye Research, was among the group of members recognized for their accomplishments, leadership and contributions to the Association.
  • Joslin Physician Receives 2009 Bernardo Alberto Houssay Award :  BOSTON - April 27, 2009 – Joslin Diabetes Center today announced that Enrique Caballero, M.D., director of Joslin’s Latino Diabetes Initiative (LDI), has been named the 2009 recipient of the Bernardo Alberto Houssay Award.
  • Joslin Diabetes Center Opens Affiliate in Dubai :  BOSTON – April 27, 2009 – Expanding its reach in the fight against the global diabetes epidemic, Joslin Diabetes Center today announced the opening of the Joslin Diabetes Center Affiliate at the Dubai Health Authority (DHA).
  • Shannon Allen Rallies around Team Joslin for Marathon :  BOSTON – April 10, 2009 – It has been almost one year since the Boston Celtics became NBA champions. But, for Shannon Allen, wife of Celtics star guard Ray Allen, it’s also been nearly 12 months since their youngest son, Walker, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. For the Allen family, the past months have been filled with ups and downs and certainly some highs and lows.
  • Joslin Study Identifies ‘Good’ Energy Burning Fat in Lean Adults:  BOSTON – April 8, 2009 – Researchers at the Joslin Diabetes Center have demonstrated that adult humans still have a type of “good” fat previously believed to be present only in babies and children.
  • Joslin Study Pinpoints Role of Insulin on Glucagon Levels:  BOSTON – April 7, 2009 – Researchers at the Joslin Diabetes Center have shown for the first time that insulin plays a key role in suppressing levels of glucagon, a hormone involved in carbohydrate metabolism and regulating blood glucose levels.
  • Richard R. Crater Joins Joslin Diabetes Center as Chief Financial Officer :  BOSTON – March 19, 2009 – Joslin Diabetes Center today announced Richard R. Crater as chief financial officer. Crater brings to Joslin more than 30 years of experience, including positions as chief financial officer at New York University Medical Center and The Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).
  • Joslin Diabetes Center’s Singing for a Cure™ Brings Two Time Grammy Winning Legend Patti LaBelle to the New England Conservatory of Music’s Jordan Hall June 20, 2009 :  BOSTON -- March 9, 2009 -- For more than 40 years, two-time Grammy winning legend, Patti LaBelle has continued to solidify herself as a musical pioneer. While millions around the globe adore her for that incredible four octave voice and hits like “On My Own” & “New Attitude,” there is a very personal journey that brings this original ‘Lady Marmalade’ to Singing for a Cure™ to benefit Joslin Diabetes Center’s High Hopes Fund.
  • Joslin Receives $2 Million from Moses D. Nunnally, Jr. Charitable Trust to Support Research into Diabetes Complications:  BOSTON – Jan. 26, 2009 – Joslin Diabetes Center today announced it has received a $2 million gift from the Moses D. Nunnally, Jr. Charitable Trust to help fund research at the Center that seeks to combat diabetes-related complications and to benefit Joslin’s High Hopes Fund which supports the Center’s greatest needs in research, patient care and education.
  • Joslin Diabetes Center Launches National Clinical Trial to Explore if Anti-Inflammatory Drug Can Improve Glucose Control in Type 2 Diabetes:  BOSTON – Jan. 21, 2009 – Joslin Diabetes Center scientists are taking groundbreaking research on the role of inflammation in type 2 diabetes to a new level with the launch of a national clinical trial to investigate whether salsalate, an anti-inflammatory drug used for years to manage arthritis pain, can reduce blood glucose levels in people with type 2 diabetes.
  • Joslin Receives $1 Million to Support Type 1 Diabetes Research:  BOSTON – Jan. 8, 2009 – Joslin Diabetes Center today announced it has received a $1 million gift from the Thomas J. Beatson, Jr. Foundation to support type 1 diabetes research.