Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center

NIDDK Symposium - 2017 NIDDK Medical Student Research Program Symposium: Students from 68 medical schools present their summer research in diabetes, digestive disease, and kidney disease at Vanderbilt University.

Life Principles - determining what role nuclear lipids and their signaling enzymes play in chromatin biology, elucidating how these nuclear protein/lipid complexes are structured, and developing novel compounds that target nuclear receptors and nuclear signaling enzymes important to cancer and diabetes.

Tour de Cure 2017 - Participants of the annual Tour de Cure, presented by the American Diabetes Association, start the race at Camp Widjiwagan.

Metabolism Studies - The research we undertake is not only critical to a basic understanding of fuel metabolism, but also has important implications to diabetes and heart disease.

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About the DRTC

The Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center (DRTC)
is a NIH-sponsored Diabetes Center that facilitates the discovery, application, and translation of scientific knowledge to improve the lives of people with diabetes.

The DRTC highlights the research of its members by brief videos. Click here » to watch DRTC members describing his/her research.

Employment Opportunities for Faculty and Postdocs

Click here for more information >>

Discovery by Vanderbilt-led group could lead to improved diabetes treatment

Vanderbilt graduate student Diane Saunders, Marcela Brissova, PhD, research associate professor of Medicine, and MD/PhD student Rachana Haliyur are first authors of a paradigm-shifting paper on type 1 diabetes.

Initiative seeks to address malnutrition among adult patients

VUMC researcher, Heidi Silver, PhD, RD, MS, recently conducted a new study addressing malnutrition in adults by providing an education- and training-based intervention for healthcare providers.

Kevin Niswender, MD, PhD has been named Clinical Research Center Director at Vanderbilt University Medical Center

2018 American Association for the Advancement of Science elected fellows from Vanderbilt

Dr. David Wasserman, Dr. Richard Simerly, and Dr. Bruce Damon were elected to the 2018 AAAS Fellows. There are now 129 current and emeritus faculty from Vanderbilt that have received this honor.

2017 NIDDK summer research student, Ashley Duhon, shares her motivations for studying medicine and researching diabetes.

Pancreatic islets study may spur diabetes treatment advances

Investigators in the Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center (VDRTC) and collaborators at Stanford University have discovered new insights into the molecular mechanisms of cell proliferation in juvenile human pancreatic islets, information that could lead to new treatments for diabetes.

Gifts highlight strong, lasting bonds between

patients and healers
Gratitude and validation: Michael Fowler, M.D.
An enduring tribute: Shubhada Jagasia, M.D., MMHC
Read More »

Support our Efforts »

My Health Chat: Advances in Diabetes Research »

The Vanderbilt Center for Diabetes Translation Research (CDTR)
and it cores provide services to investigators
with externally funded, diabetes-related
translational research.
Read More »

Vanderbilt Diabetes:
News Highlights »
Community Outreach »

Research Headlines

Featured Investigator:

David H. Wasserman, PhD

Annie Mary Lyle Chair
Professor, Molecular Physiology and Biophysics
Director, Mouse Metabolic Phenotyping Center

Research Specialty:
Metabolism

Insulin and glucagon regulation

Dr. Wasserman and his lab study animal models of metabolism via physical exercise, insulin stimulation, and diet.

Featured Article:

Cellular calcium handling in diabetes

David Wasserman, Ph.D., and graduate student Ian Williams have discovered how insulin moves through blood vessels and enters the skeletal muscle. This discovery could allow researchers to develop new methods of reversing insulin resistance.

Core Facilities

Cell Imaging Shared Resource (CISR)
Hormone Assay & Analytical Services Core
Islet Procurement & Analysis Core
Metabolic Physiology Shared Resource (MPSR)
Transgenic / ES Cell Shared Resource (TMESCSR)
Vanderbilt Diet, Body Composition and Metabolism Core

Calendar

Attend one of our upcoming meetings or seminars! Note that this calendar includes the BIG and MetabIG series!

When and where	Topic and related details

Apr. 20 12:00 PM 206 Preston Research Building	DRTC Friday Seminar Series Michael Schwartz, MD, University of Washington CNS Control of Glucose Homeostasis: Implications for the Pathogenesis and Treatment of Diabetes
Apr. 25 9:00 AM 512 Light Hall	Beta Cell Interest Group (BIG) Emily Walker (Stein lab) TBA
Apr. 27 12:00 PM 206 Preston Research Building	DRTC Friday Seminar Series Takamune Takahashi, MD, PhD, Vanderbilt University Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase as a Therapeutic Target for Diabetic Nephropathy
May. 4 12:00 PM 206 Preston Research Building	DRTC Friday Seminar Series Carrie Grueter, PhD, Vanderbilt University TBD
May. 9 9:00 AM 512 Light Hall	Beta Cell Interest Group (BIG) Over Cabera, PhD and Mansuo Hayashi, PhD (Lilly) TBA

View more meetings & seminars

Members & Leadership

DRTC Faculty Members
DRTC Executive Committee

More information

Contact Us

Alvin Powers
Director

Suzanne Starr
Administrative Officer

Jessica Kimber
Website Administrator

News & Events

Fast Links

The Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center is supported by NIH grant DK20593.