Diabetes Centers

On this page:

• Funding for Diabetes Centers
• Resources and Services Available from Diabetes Centers
  • Diabetes Research Centers (DRCs)
  • Centers for Diabetes Translation Research (CDTRs)
• Related Links
• Research Resources
• Additional Research Programs
• Meetings & Workshops

Funding for Diabetes Centers

NIDDK’s Diabetes Centers program supports extramural research institutions that have established an existing base of high-quality, diabetes-related research. The program supports and enhances interdisciplinary research in diabetes but does not directly fund major research projects; rather, it provides core resources to enhance the efficiency, productivity, and interdisciplinary cooperation of Center investigators conducting research in diabetes and related areas of endocrinology and metabolism.

NIDDK funds Diabetes Centers via P30. Please see the Diabetes Research Centers (DRC) application resources or the Centers for Diabetes Translation Research (CDTR) application resources for tables and additional documentation required in all Diabetes Centers applications.

Centers are funded on the following review schedule:

• CDTR: announcements are published once every 5 years
• DRC: are published three times every 5 years

Resources and Services Available from Diabetes Centers

NIDDK Diabetes Centers generate investigative resources that are available to the broader research community. Centers also provide short-term enrichment activities, as well as pilot and feasibility programs that fund small research grants designed to generate preliminary data for larger grant applications.

For more information about each Diabetes Center’s aims, shared resources, pilot and feasibility programs, enrichment programs, and activities, please visit their websites:

Diabetes Research Centers (DRCs)

The DRCs promote new discoveries and enhance scientific progress through support of cutting-edge basic and clinical research related to the etiology and complications of diabetes, with the goal of rapidly translating research findings into novel strategies for the prevention, treatment and cure of diabetes and related conditions. DRCs are intended to improve the quality and multidisciplinary nature of research on diabetes and related endocrinology and metabolism research by providing shared access to specialized technical resources and expertise and by creating an environment that supports important and innovative research. DRCs are expected to raise awareness and interest in fundamental and clinical diabetes research at their institutions, as well as locally, regionally, and nationally.

• Research Aims: Investigations primarily target the minority and other served under populations prevalent among the residents of the Bronx and Manhattan, adjacent Westchester county, and other boroughs comprising New York City. The primary research efforts encompass both type 1 (T1DM) and type 2 (T2DM) diabetes and related metabolic defects.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Animal Physiology Core
    • Immuno-Technology
    • The Human Islet & Adenovirus
    • Stable Isotope & Metabolomics
    • Translational Research
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program
    •  Supports
      • New investigators with interests in diabetes or related metabolic and endocrine disorders, including junior investigators shifting from mentor-based research to an independent career. Meritorious applications from new investigators receive priority for funding.
      • Established faculty in other areas who wish to apply their expertise to diabetes research.
      • Diabetes Center members who wish to explore a new area of research that constitutes a substantive departure from their on-going work.

• Research Aims: The center fosters research in the prevention and treatment of diabetes and endocrine diseases and their complications and ultimately to improves the lives of endocrine patients.
• Activities & Services
  
  • Cores
    • Transgenic and Knockout Mouse
    • Metabolic and Molecular Physiology
    • Transcriptional Genomics
      
    • Epigenetic and Genomics
    • Human Genetics
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program
    • The DRC P&F mechanism will fund innovative new projects that will explore the feasibility of novel testable concepts and enhance the endocrine/diabetes research scope within the institutions. 

• Research Aims:
  • The University of Colorado Denver (UC Denver) is world renowned for basic, translational, and clinical diabetes research and treatment of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes (T1D and T2D), and their related complications.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Clinical Resource
    • Tissue Procurement and Processing
    • Cell and Tissue Analysis
    • Disease Modeling
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program
    • The UC Denver Pilot & Feasibility Program will recruit young faculty into diabetes and diabetes-related research and encourage established investigators from other fields to enter the diabetes field.

University of Michigan

• Research Aims: The goal of the MDRC is to establish, promote, and enhance multidisciplinary and collaborative basic biomedical and clinical research among member investigators studying diabetes, its complications, and related endocrine and metabolic disorders.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Animal Studies Core
    • Clinical Core
    • Molecular Genetics Core
    • Microscopy, Imaging, and Cellular Physiology Core
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program
    • Proposals must focus on type 2 translational research in diabetes: the translation of research advances into widespread clinical or community practice. The research may focus on the identification of barriers to widespread adoption of new science and the testing of interventions to overcome those barriers. 

University of Pennsylvania

• Research Aims: Supports research in diabetes and endocrinology via Scientific Cores, a Pilot and Feasibility Grant Program, and a series of seminars, retreats and other activities that facilitate communication and collaboration of DRC investigators while keeping them abreast of the latest discoveries in diabetes and endocrinology.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Functional Genomics Core
    • Metabolomics Core
    • Islet Cell Biology Core
    • Mouse Phenotyping, Physiology and Metabolism Core
    • Radioimmunoassy/Biomarker Core
    • Transgenic and Chimeric Mouse Core
    • Viral Vector Core
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program
    • The P&F program is particularly directed at new investigators and established investigators new to diabetes research. Established diabetes investigators pursuing high impact/high risk projects or projects that are a significant departure from their usual work are also eligible for support under the DRC P&F program. Applications are welcome from basic, clinical and translational investigators.

University of Washington

• Research Aims: Facilitating and enhancing diabetes research to find a cure to diabetes.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Cell Function Analysis Core
    • Cellular and Molecular Imaging Core
    • Quantitative and Functional Proteomics Core
    • Vector and Transgenic Mouse Core
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program
    • Intended to develop new research in the area of diabetes and its complications at the University of Washington.

Washington University

• Research Aims: Our long-term goal is the development of new preventive strategies and therapies aimed at improving the lives of Americans with diabetes and those at risk for diabetes and related metabolic disorders.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Diabetes Models Phenotyping Core
    • Transgenic & ES Cell Core
    • Translational Diagnostics Core
    • Cell and Tissue Imaging Core
    • Metabolic Tissue Function Core
    • Metabolomics Core
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program

Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center

• Research Aims: 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. Our investigators conduct basic, clinical, and translational research on the etiology, prevention, treatment, and complications of diabetes and obesity. The DRTC supports core facilities that enhance diabetes-related research and organizes an Enrichment Program of seminars and small groups that create a dynamic and inclusive environment for the training of the next generation of scientists. We invite you to collaborate or interact with us as we work to reduce the burden of diabetes.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Hormone Assay & Analytical Services Core
    • Animal Metabolic Physiology Core
    • Human Metabolic Physiology and Genomics Core
    • Islet and Pancreas Analysis
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program

Yale University

• Research Aims: The scope of the research activities of the membership is very broad, ranging from basic molecular biology to whole body clinical physiology in patients with diabetes.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Cell Biology Core
    • Clinical Metabolism Core
    • Diabetes Translational Core
    • Physiology Core
    • Molecular Genetics Core
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program
    • Priority will be given to new collaborative investigations.

Centers for Diabetes Translation Research (CDTRs)

The CDTR  mission is to improve translation of research related to diabetes prevention, treatment, and health equity by supporting research across the T2-T4 translational spectrum (e.g., moving from efficacy to testing effectiveness in real world practice and communities and dissemination and implementation science).  CDTRs are intended to enhance the efficiency, productivity, and multidisciplinary and multisectoral nature of diabetes translation research through shared access to specialized technical expertise and resources.  CDTRs' expertise includes intervention adaptation and refinement, development of measures, techniques, processes, methods, and practices related to diabetes translation research. These innovative Centers along with their diverse partnership models provide the infrastructure needed to advance translational research in health disparities and health equity by providing core services and consultation at their local institutions, as well as resources regionally and nationally.

• Research Aims: The aim of the New York Regional Center for Diabetes Translation Research is to increase collaboration and enhance communication among investigators from multiple institutions and diverse disciplines. There is a focus on the following unifying themes – health equity and addressing differences in population health status that can be traced to unequal economic and social conditions; and using a biopsychosocial approach to integrate diabetes and obesity translational research through consideration of biological, psychological, and social determinants of health and disease.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Behavioral Science and Technology Core (BSTC)
    • Life Course Methodology Core 
    • Population Health and Health Systems (PHHS) Core 
    • National Core: Latino Network for Diabetes Translational Research 
  • Enrichment Program
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program
    

Emory University

• Research Aims: The Georgia Center for Diabetes Translation Research (GCDTR) focuses on advancing the science regarding the reach, effectiveness, adoption, and sustainability of technological, behavioral, pharmacological diabetes prevention and management advances. To do this, GCDTR leverages design and evaluation expertise; careful application of socioecological models, behavioral sciences, and community-engaged participatory research that can improve engagement with clinical, policy, and community stakeholders; and established and emerging technologies to advance translation research for health equity.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Design and Evaluation for Equity Core
    • Socioecological and Behavioral Science for Equity Core
    • Regional Core: Technologies Advancing Translation and Equity Core
      
  • Enrichment Program
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program

Kaiser Foundation Research Institute 

• Research Aims: The Diabetes Research for Equity through Advanced Multilevel Science Center for Diabetes Translational Research (DREAMS-CDTR) aims to advance health equity science through the development and translation of: 1) innovations and structural changes to healthcare delivery systems that substantively reduce health inequalities, and 2) innovative, scalable interventions to alter the socioenvironmental drivers of the Type 2 Diabetes epidemic and associated disparities. Focusing on the northern California and Central Valley regions of California, the DREAMS-CDTR will provide research resources for investigators to conduct clinical research and interventions designed to inform practice and policy change at the health system, community and policy levels. The DREAMS-CDTR (formerly Health Delivery Systems) brings together translational science core faculty who have expertise in diverse, multi-level areas including: food insecurity, medication adherence, health communication, health IT, social policy, and cost effectiveness analysis. DREAMS-CDTR involves five regional academic sites with a range of public and non-profit health systems that serve large and diverse populations: Kaiser Permanente Northern California’s Division of Research, Stanford University and the University of California at San Francisco, Merced and Davis.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Health Equity and Action Translational (HEAT) Core
    • Methods and Data Integration (MDI) Core
    • National Core: National Diabetes Policy Resource (DPR) Core
  • Enrichment Program
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program

• Research Aims: The aims of the Chicago Center for Diabetes Translation Research are to increase the impact of rigorous diabetes translation research to reduce disparities in Chicago and the nation by organizing partnerships across academic institutions and stakeholder groups into working groups that include: Clinician-Patient Relationship and Shared Decision Making, Social Determinants of Health, Diabetes Prevention, Diabetes Modeling, Organization and Financing of Care, Diabetes and Aging; and to attract and support diverse investigators who are new to the area of diabetes translation research by providing education, training, mentoring, support for community and stakeholder engagement, pilot and feasibility seed grants, and access to critical translational research core resources. This CDTR combines the complementary strengths of the University of Chicago and Northwestern University, as well as numerous partners and stakeholders, into a city-wide center to amplify the center’s impact on Chicago, the Midwest region, and nation.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Research Design, Data, and Analytics Core
      
    • Community Engagement and Health Equity Core
    • National Core: Accelerating Health Equity and Eliminating Diabetes Disparities in Community Health Centers (AHEAD-CHC)
      
  • Enrichment Program
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program
    

• Research Aims: The aims of the Center for American Indian and Alaska Native Diabetes Translation Research (CAIANDTR) is to translate research of proven efficacy into practice in both clinical and community settings, with the goal of improving the diabetes-related health of Native people. CAIANDTR builds directly upon our decade-long coordination of the Indian Health Service’s Special Diabetes Program for Indians (SDPI). CAIANDTR provides resources locally, regionally, and nationally in areas relevant to the NIDDK's translation research agenda. Our work is specific to AI/ANs, but is generalizable to other segments of the population. CAIANDTR's specific aims are to: (1) Provide an administrative structure that promotes excellence in translation research and research capacity-building specific to improving diabetes-related health among AI/ANs; (2) Evaluate the impact of training, technical assistance, and consultation activities on the capacity of other investigators to pursue scientifically meritorious diabetes translation research specific to AI/ANs; and (3) Expand training, technical assistance, and consultation activities, delivered through a Research Base of funded faculty, whose research either targets diabetes or is translational in nature with clear potential for application to diabetes.
   
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Translational Research Core
    • Community Outreach and Engagement Core
    • Health Literacy
    • National Resource Core (NRC)
  • Enrichment Program
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program
    • Research focuses on small scale research projects that explore the extension of diabetes prevention and treatment research – with special emphasis on reducing risk as well as enhancing clinical outcomes – to American Indians and Alaska Natives. There is particular interest in stimulating work that considers the relevance of recent discoveries for application within Native communities.

• Research Aims: The goal of the Michigan Center for Diabetes Translational Research (MCDTR) is to advance research along the continuum of diabetes T2-T4 translational research to prevent diabetes and enhance health and wellbeing of people with diabetes, with a specific emphasis on novel approaches to improve health equity. This goal is accomplished by promoting research that supports rapid dissemination, implementation, and sustained use of effective interventions, programs, and policies. The MCDTR fosters and helps sustain multidisciplinary, novel, and cross-sectoral collaborations, including work with multiple health and social service organizations, where appropriate, to advance emerging scientific areas of translational research and health equity.  By attracting, retaining, developing, and supporting early stage and other researchers to conduct research that translates scientific discoveries from bedside to practice and to the community, improvements in diabetes prevention, treatment, population health, and health equity are achievable. 
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Evaluation Methods and Intervention Strategies Core
    • Addressing Social and Behavioral Determinants of Health Core
    • National Core: Leveraging Community, Peer, and Family Support Core
  • Enrichment Program
  • Pilot & Feasibility Program

• Research Aims: The Washington University Center for Diabetes Translation Research (WU-CDTR) aims to advance a rigorous, scientific evidence base to inform the dissemination, implementation, and sustainability of efficacious interventions for populations at risk for diabetes disparities. The Center is guided by a strategic vision in which a health equity lens is the foundation for transformative diabetes research translated into action and impact. This equity-driven vision informs our Center mission to be the nexus for transdisciplinary team science in advancing the conduct of the next generation of diabetes translation research. The WU-CDTR is a collaboration between Washington University in St. Louis, the Council on Black Health, housed at Drexel University, and the University of Missouri, Columbia.
• Activities & Services
  • Cores
    • Dissemination and Implementation in Diabetes Research
    • Health Communication and Health Literacy
      
    • Policy and Systems Science Analysis 
    • Regional Core: Health Informatics in Diabetes Research 
    • National Core: Solutions to Diabetes in Black Americans
  • Enrichment Program
  • Pilot and Feasibility Program

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