Federal Grant Award Summary

The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) awarded a Project Grant of $248,975.00 to The Regents of the University of Colorado-Denver under the Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases Extramural Research program (CFDA 93.847) for research activities spanning from May 15, 2026, through April 30, 2029. The funded research investigates pancreatic beta-cell glucose toxicity and its relationship to messenger RNA (mRNA) translation, with the objective of elucidating mechanisms underlying insulin secretion dysfunction under chronic high glucose conditions. Using advanced molecular biology techniques including ribosome profiling and nascent proteomics, the research team identifies and characterizes genome-wide translational changes in insulin-producing cells and validates findings across primary rat and human islet models and in vivo hyperglycemia models. The study examines alterations in ribosome protein composition and RNA decay pathways to determine how sustained high glucose exposure impacts protein abundance and translation fidelity.

This research addresses a critical gap in understanding early-stage beta-cell dysfunction relevant to diabetes pathogenesis, including the potential role of defective ribosome products in type 1 diabetes autoimmunity. The findings are expected to contribute to the scientific foundation necessary for developing improved prevention and treatment strategies for diabetes-related metabolic disorders, consistent with NIDDK's extramural research mission.