Neuherberg, 10.02.2021

The GIP receptor in the central nervous system plays a crucial role in the regulation of body weight and food intake. This is shown by a recent study by Helmholtz Zentrum München, ETH Zurich and the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD). The study, which has now been published in 'Cell Metabolism', identifies new targets for the development of a drug treatment for obesity and type 2 diabetes.

Berlin, 10.02.2021

Type 2 diabetes is not a disease that develops suddenly. Rather, it usually develops over a period of years from a preliminary stage known as prediabetes. Even if those affected are unaware that they have prediabetes and their blood glucose levels are still below the critical diagnostic threshold, their blood glucose regulation is already slightly impaired in this phase. However, people with prediabetes are not a homogeneous group, as physicians from Tübingen University Hospital, the Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) of Helmholtz Zentrum München at the University of Tübingen and the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD) show in the journal 'Nature Medicine'. Within the scope of a long-term study, they identified six subtypes of prediabetes that differ significantly in terms of risk factors, disease development and prognosis. According to the German Diabetes Society (DDG) and the DZD, this could result in important approaches for individually adapted preventive and therapeutic measures.

Düsseldorf, 04.02.2021

For the past seven years, DZD scientist PD Dr. Julia Szendrödi has headed the Clinical Study Center at the German Diabetes Center. Now she has accepted a professorship at the University of Heidelberg to take over as Medical Director of the Clinic for Endocrinology, Diabetology, Metabolic Diseases and Clinical Chemistry at Heidelberg University Hospital – a further step along the path of her successful scientific career.

Neuherberg, 27.01.2021

Researchers have discovered a novel and druggable insulin inhibitory receptor, named inceptor. The latest study from Helmholtz Zentrum München, the Technical University of Munich and the German Center for Diabetes Research is a significant milestone for diabetes research as the scientific community celebrates 100 years of insulin and 50 years of insulin receptor discovery. The blocking of inceptor function leads to an increased sensitisation of the insulin signaling pathway in pancreatic beta cells. This might allow protection and regeneration of beta cells for diabetes remission.

Potsdam-Rehbrücke, 19.01.2021

Successful weight loss is considered to be an integral part of the therapy for type 2 diabetes. Nevertheless, studies keep appearing that question the importance of losing weight. However, new data from a large-scale observational study carried out at DIfE in cooperation with the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD) support the current recommendations of physicians. The findings, published in the journal 'Diabetologia', suggest that obesity and weight gain can lead to vascular disorders, the leading cause of disease and death for people with type 2 diabetes.

Düsseldorf, 18.01.2021

In recent years, air pollutants have been suggested as risk factors for diabetes and its – also mostly obesity-associated – comorbidities. Until now, however, this link has not been investigated for peripheral neuropathy. A new study by the German Diabetes Center (DDZ) and the Helmholtz Zentrum München has explored a possible association of air pollutants and the risk for peripheral neuropathy in humans.

Neuherberg, 10.01.2021

The gut plays a central role in the regulation of the body’s metabolism and its dysfunction is associated with a variety of diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, colitis and colorectal cancer that affect millions of people worldwide. Targeting endocrine dysfunction at an early stage by stimulating the formation of specific enteroendocrine cells from intestinal stem cells could be a promising regenerative approach for diabetes therapy. For this, however, a detailed understanding of the intestinal stem cell lineage hierarchy and the signals regulating the recruitment of the different intestinal cell types is critical.

Tübingen, 04.01.2021

All prediabetes is not the same: in people in the preliminary stages of type 2 diabetes, there are six clearly distinguishable subtypes, which differ in the development of the disease, diabetes risk, and the development of secondary diseases. This is shown in a study by the Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) of Helmholtz Zentrum München at the University of Tübingen, Tübingen University Hospital and the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD). The results have now been published in 'Nature Medicine'. The new classification can help in the future to prevent the manifestation of diabetes or the development of diabetes complications through targeted prevention.