Beta Cell Biology Consortium (U01)

Letters of Intent Receipt Date: October 26, 2009
Application Receipt Date: November 23, 2009

The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases invite new U01 applications to participate in a consortium of investigators, the Beta Cell Biology Consortium (BCBC); www.betacell.org . The BCBC will work collaboratively to facilitate research in the following areas: 1) use cues from pancreatic development to directly differentiate pancreatic beta cells and islets from stem/progenitor cells for use in cell-replacement therapies for diabetes; 2) determine how to stimulate beta cell regeneration in the adult pancreas as a basis for improving beta cell mass in diabetic patients; 3) determine how to reprogram progenitor/adult cells into pancreatic beta-cells both in-vitro and in-vivo as a mean for developing cell-replacement therapies for diabetes; and 4) investigate the progression of human type-1 diabetes using patient-derived cells and tissues transplanted in humanized mouse models.  The BCBC will be responsible for collaboratively generating the necessary reagents, mouse strains, antibodies, assays, protocols, technologies and validation assays that are beyond the scope of any single research effort proposed by the investigators.