Following the evaluation, the Senate of the Leibniz Association recommended the continued funding of the German Diabetes Center (DDZ). The Center in Düsseldorf received a positive evaluation in recognition of its combination of basic research with clinical and care-related research as well as its wide range of collaborations and expertise for clinical studies.

Institutions of the Leibniz Association are evaluated by the Leibniz Senate every seven years at the latest. In December 2020, the DDZ was therefore evaluated by an independent evaluation panel which included international experts. The focus was on content and structural development as well as future planning. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the questions of the evaluation panel were answered in an online session. The Senate's official statement has now been published: the Leibniz Association recommends funding the DDZ for the next seven years. "The report shows that the DDZ has been able to continuously improve its performance since the last evaluation," said Professor Michael Roden, scientific executive director and spokesman for the board of the German Diabetes Center. "The commission thus also supports the DDZ's future plans to develop new concepts for precision diabetology and to test them for the tailor-made care of people with diabetes."

In its official statement, the Senate justified its decision by stating that the German Diabetes Center combines basic biological research with clinical and care-related research in a very convincing manner. The cornerstones of the Center are the prevention, early detection, diagnosis and treatment of diabetes and its concomitant and secondary diseases. Under Professor Roden, who has been director since 2008, the DDZ has shown excellent development after previously difficult years. With new research groups, the DDZ now covers the entire spectrum of diabetes research. In particular, the clinical studies have significantly increased international visibility. The DDZ thus also contributes to reducing the individual and societal burden of diabetes mellitus. A high number of papers with research findings have been published in top journals. The DDZ is also involved in various and extremely valuable epidemiological cohort studies. Of particular note here is the DDZ-led German Diabetes Study, which is being conducted at eight sites nationwide as part of the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD).

In addition, the DDZ operates the GNC Study Center in Düsseldorf together with the Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine (IUF). Last but not least, with its National Diabetes Information Center, the DDZ addresses both medical professionals and the general public. In conclusion, the Senate recommends that the federal and state governments continue their joint support of the DDZ.

The German Diabetes Center (DDZ) serves as the German reference center for diabetes. Its objective is to contribute to the improvement of prevention, early detection, diagnosis and treatment of diabetes mellitus. At the same time, the research center aims at improving the epidemiological data situation in Germany. The DDZ coordinates the multicenter German Diabetes Study and is a point of contact for all players in the health sector. In addition, it prepares scientific information on diabetes mellitus and makes it available to the public. The DDZ is part of the Leibniz Association (Wissenschaftsgemeinschaft Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, WGL) and is a partner of the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD e.V.). www.ddz.de/en

Contact:
Gordon McBane
Pressesprecher DDZ
gordon.mcbane(at)ddz.de
+49 (0)211 3382-450