Federal Grant Award Summary

The Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope received a $178,000 Project Grant award from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) under the Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases Extramural Research program (CFDA 93.847), effective May 1, 2026, through April 30, 2028. The award funds research investigating how the native pancreatic microenvironment regulates human islet cell function in health and Type 1 Diabetes (T1D). The primary deliverables include comparative functional and imaging analyses of hormone secretion and calcium signaling between intact human pancreatic tissue slices and isolated islets from matched donors, with separate cohorts of T1D and non-diabetic participants.

The research project produces two primary outputs: quantification of the physiological impact of removing islets from their native tissue context by comparing endocrine cell responses to stimuli across paired tissue models, and identification of specific paracrine signals from non-endocrine cells (acinar, ductal, vascular, and neuronal) that influence islet cell activity. The findings are designed to advance understanding of how tissue context affects islet biology, provide validation of widely-used isolated islet research models, and generate evidence-based insights to support development of more physiologically relevant human islet models for disease research and therapeutic development targeting diabetes treatment and prevention.