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Scientists awarded nearly half a million dollars tofightType 1 DiabetesThe JDRF awarded atwo-year grant totaling$472,683 to the EVMSresearch team, led byJerry Nadler, MD.David Taylor-Fishwick, PhD, left, and Jerry Nadler, MD, discuss theirresearch that could lead to a cure for Type 1 Diabetes.A mounting concern in the health carecommunity, diabetes affects about eight percentof the U.S. population, or 23.6 million people. And,unfortunately, these numbers are growing daily.Though current treatments allow diabetics tocontrol the condition, many are at high risk ofdangerous complications including heart disease,blindness, nerve damage and kidney problems.The U.S. Centers for Disease Control andPrevention report that in 2007, diabetes was thecountry’s fifth deadliest disease, and nationwidethe total direct and indirect cost of diabetes was$174 billion – more than twice the Department ofHealth and Human Services’ 2010 federal budget.Recognition of this growing epidemic and itsdetrimental impact on the Hampton Roads areawas the impetus behind the development of EasternVirginia Medical School’s Strelitz Diabetes Centerand the school’s strategic research initiative thatfocuses on diabetes, obesity and metabolic diseases.Now, EVMS researchers at the Strelitz DiabetesCenter believe they have uncovered a step thatcould lead to a cure for Type 1 Diabetes, and,with funding from the Juvenile Diabetes ResearchFoundation (JDRF), they hope to translate theirlaboratory findings into clinical treatments.Previously known as juvenile diabetes becauseit is often diagnosed in children and young adults,Type 1 Diabetes is an autoimmune disorderassociated with the destruction of insulinproducingbeta cells. Without insulin, the body isunable to process sugars and starches, leaving itunable to convert them into energy for movement,growth, repair and other functions.The JDRF awarded a two-year grant totaling$472,683 to the EVMS research team, led by JerryNadler, MD, professor and chair of internal medicineand director of the center. The team has beenstudying the role of the enzyme 12- Lipoxygenase(12-LO) in damaging insulin-producing beta cells,a condition that leads to Type 1 Diabetes.“We have successfully identified a vital step inthe development of Type 1 Diabetes and we arehopeful that blocking this enzyme could hold thekey to engineering breakthrough new treatments,”Dr. Nadler says.12-LO is a protein-based enzyme in beta cellsthat produces lipids. These lipids are highly proinflammatoryand can lead to the death of betacells. EVMS researchers have demonstratedin animal models that deletion of the gene thatproduces 12-LO prevents the development of Type1 Diabetes at a rate of nearly 100 percent.The group has now identified the particularform of 12-LO that is in human-insulin-producingcells. And, though still preliminary, this researchcould help scientists develop a novel therapeuticapproach to stop beta cells from being destroyedand to allow functional regeneration of beta cellsin Type 1 Diabetes patients.Working with Ted Holman, PhD, a professorof chemistry and biochemistry at the University ofCalifornia, Santa Cruz, and other scientists at theNIH, Dr. Nadler and his team hope to use thesefindings to develop a new drug.“We are fortunate to be working with Dr.Holman, who has discovered some very promisingcompounds that can reduce 12-LO activity. Now,with the generosity and support of the JDRF,we can apply this technology to help prevent thedestruction of beta cells and allow the regenerationof insulin-producing cells in Type 1 Diabetes,” saysDr. Nadler.“Dr. Nadler and his team have made amazingstrides in our understanding of how lipoxygenasemay contribute to the development of diabetes andtheir work opens the possibility of directly targetingthis enzyme for treatment,” said Dr. Holman.Based on this important discovery, Dr. Nadlerhas already begun testing Dr. Holman’s lipoxygenaseinhibitors in the hopes of generating new treatmentsfor diabetes. The researchers are excited about thepreliminary results, and with the funds from JDRF,they expect to make additional progress.newswww.eVMS.EDU fall 20097