Dr. E. Dale Abel, Director of the Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Research Center (FOEDRC) and Chair of the Department of Internal Medicine, and Dr. Andrew (Andy) Norris, FOEDRC’s Associate Director, have just been awarded a five-year, $2.02M training grant from the National Institutes of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health. The T32 grant will fund the Diabetes Research Training Program at the University of Iowa and will support up to six post-doctoral trainees or subspecialty fellows per year. The grant will support existing trainees or support the recruitment of outstanding new trainees to the University of Iowa.

“The training leverages the tremendous scientific depth of the FOEDRC and our commitment to training and mentoring the next generation of diabetes and obesity researchers,” Dr. Abel said. More than three dozen diverse but interactive FOEDRC faculty will cover nine different thematic areas of training and focus. Drs. Abel, Rajan Sah, Long-Sheng Song, and Pete Snyder among others will focus trainees on the connections between cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Drs. Kaikobad Irani, Isabella Grumbach, Mark Yorek, and Brandon Davies will address the vascular, endothelial, and neuronal dysfunctions associated with this global epidemic. In addition to basic research, clinical research opportunities will also be available with mentorship from Drs. Norris, Helena Laroche, Bill Sivitz, and Katie Larson Ode. The graphic below provides a full list of participating faculty members and the thematic areas of training they will address.

Diabetes research at the University of Iowa has become one of the institution’s most prominent and visible research programs. With additional resources to offer full stipends of up to two years to eligible trainees, the FOEDRC’s commitment to mentoring and launching the careers of the next generation of diabetes and obesity researchers is as strong as its dedication to identifying the pathogenesis and treatment of the disease. Congratulations to Dr. Abel and Dr. Norris on this remarkable success.