Latest Diabetes News

  • Harvard researchers outline roadmap to solve orphan receptor challenge

    A new review highlights how synthetic biology, AI, and spatial omics could transform ligand-receptor discovery from one-by-one searches into network-level mapping.

  • Targeting lipid enzymes triggers starvation states in aggressive tumor cells

    While many American adults are trying to reduce cholesterol levels, certain cancerous tumors have a relentless appetite for the metabolite.

  • New clinical guidelines outline strategies to improve postpartum cardiovascular care

    A new Expert Consensus Decision Pathway by the American College of Cardiology (ACC) provides recommended strategies for improving postpartum care for individuals with and at risk for short- and long-term cardiovascular disease (CVD).

  • Targeting a key protein reduces injury in steatotic liver transplantation

    Steatotic donor livers are highly susceptible to post-transplant dysfunction; however, the underlying mechanisms remain incompletely understood.

  • Scientists urge advocacy to protect vital global vaccine research

    Scientists and physicians should advocate to protect the vaccine research infrastructure that has saved an estimated 154 million lives over the past 50 years, according to a new commentary by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine and the University of Washington.

  • Brain scans find no evidence of widespread inflammation in long COVID

    A new brain imaging study has found no evidence of widespread brain inflammation in patients suffering from prolonged symptoms after COVID-19 infection. Instead, the most severe long COVID symptoms were associated with increased brain activity in regions involved in mood and emotion.

  • Semaglutide helps patients who gain weight after bariatric surgery

    New UCL research supports use of the weight loss drug semaglutide for patients who do not get enough benefit from bariatric surgery.

  • NIH researchers discover how weight-loss drugs alter brain cells

    A team of researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have unveiled new details about the events GLP-1 receptor agonists trigger within neurons, which have been largely unexplored until now.

  • Boston Children's scientists create new booster-free mRNA vaccine strategy

    In a new study published in Nature Immunology, researchers at Boston Children's Hospital demonstrated that pairing the original COVID-19 mRNA vaccine with an immune system enhancer, known as an adjuvant, extended the duration of the vaccine's protection in mice from a few months up to two years.

  • Cincinnati scientists grow larger gut organoids with self-developing nerve cells

    Thanks to special 3D-printed scaffolding trays designed by experts at Cincinnati Children's, researchers can now produce larger versions of functional human gut organoids twice as fast as previous methods-and these organoids grow their own nerve cells.

  • Scientists discover sleep switch that builds muscle, burns fat, and boosts brainpower

    Deep sleep does far more than rest the body — it activates a powerful brain-driven system that controls growth hormone, fueling muscle and bone strength, metabolism, and even mental performance. Scientists have now mapped the neural circuits behind this process, uncovering a delicate feedback loop in which sleep boosts growth hormone, and that same hormone helps regulate wakefulness.

  • Scientists find the genetic switch that makes pancreatic cancer resist chemotherapy

    Scientists have identified a crucial molecular switch that decides whether pancreatic cancer cells resist chemotherapy or respond to it. The key player, a gene called GATA6, keeps tumours in a more structured and treatable form—but it gets shut down by an overactive KRAS-driven pathway. When researchers blocked that pathway, GATA6 levels rebounded and cancer cells became more sensitive to chemo. The discovery could help turn some of the toughest pancreatic tumours into ones doctors can better control.

  • Scientists find hidden pathways pancreatic cancer uses to spread

    Researchers have discovered how pancreatic cancer reprograms its surroundings to spread quickly and stealthily. By using a protein called periostin, the tumor remodels nearby tissue and invades nerves, which helps cancer cells travel and form metastases. This process also creates a tough, fibrous barrier that makes treatments less effective. Targeting periostin could help stop this invasion before it starts.

  • Northwestern Medicine’s new antibody wakes the immune system against pancreatic cancer

    Pancreatic cancer uses a sugar-coated disguise to evade the immune system, helping explain why it’s so hard to treat. Northwestern scientists discovered this hidden mechanism and created an antibody that strips away the tumor’s protective signal. In animal tests, immune cells sprang back into action and tumors grew much more slowly. The team is now refining the therapy for future human trials.

  • Dementia-like clumps found in cells before cancer strikes

    Researchers found that pancreatic pre-cancer cells mimic dementia by forming clumps of proteins due to faulty recycling processes. These insights could shed light on why pancreatic cancer develops so aggressively and why it is difficult to treat. By studying overlaps with neurological diseases, scientists hope to identify new strategies for prevention and treatment.

  • The sleep switch that builds muscle, burns fat, and boosts brainpower

    UC Berkeley researchers mapped the brain circuits that control growth hormone during sleep, uncovering a feedback system where sleep fuels hormone release, and the hormone regulates wakefulness. The discovery helps explain links between poor sleep, obesity, diabetes, and cognitive decline, while opening new paths for treating sleep and metabolic disorders.

  • This tiny implant could save diabetics from silent, deadly crashes

    MIT engineers have developed a tiny implantable device that could revolutionize emergency treatment for people with Type 1 diabetes. The device contains a powdered form of glucagon and can be remotely triggered—either manually or automatically by a glucose monitor—to release the hormone when blood sugar drops too low. This offers a potentially life-saving safety net, especially during sleep or for young children.

  • Biologists identify targets for new pancreatic cancer treatments

    Cryptic peptides, which are expressed in pancreatic cancer cells, could be promising targets for T-cell therapies that attack pancreatic tumors, according to a new study.

  • Low blood sugar contributes to eye damage and vision loss in diabetic retinopathy; experimental drug may help treat condition

    Scientists say they have determined that low blood sugar, or hypoglycemia, may promote a breakdown of the blood-retinal barrier, an important boundary that regulates the flow of nutrients, waste and water in and out of the retina.

  • In pancreatic cancer, a race against time

    Scientists have found a way to 'intercept' pancreatic cancer. By inhibiting the cancer gene FGFR2, they were able to slow tumor formation. By targeting the FGFR2 and EGFR proteins, they were able to prevent pancreatic cancer from forming in the first place.

  • Immunotherapy may boost KRAS-targeted therapy in pancreatic cancer

    Adding immunotherapy to new KRAS inhibitors boosted responses in preclinical models, setting the stage for future trials of the combination strategy.

  • Receiving low-glucose alerts improves diabetic drivers' safety on the road

    A Japanese study has found that the use of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices, equipped with sensors that alert diabetics when their blood sugar levels drop, can potentially make diabetic drivers safer on the road. Those who used the devices had lower incidences of low blood sugar and reported increased confidence in driving.

  • Toward improved early detection of pancreatic cancer

    Pancreatic cancer (PC) is the worst prognosis cancer globally, with just 13% of patients who are diagnosed with PC surviving for 5 years or more after initial diagnosis. Early detection of PC is the primary concern of most PC research, as it has the potential to make a substantial difference to the treatment and survival of patients. Survival rates, however, remain poor due to the vague nature of the symptoms associated with early-stage PC, and subsequently the late-stage of the disease at diagnosis. Now researchers are focusing on pancreatic cystic lesions to tackle the crucial issue of identifying patients who are at high-risk of developing pancreatic cancer, to improve survival rates.

  • Diabetes can drive the evolution of antibiotic resistance

    Researchers have proven that antibiotic-resistant strains of a harmful bacteria thrive in a diabetic infection environment.

  • New blood test identifies hard-to-detect pancreatic cancer with 85% accuracy

    A new blood test could help doctors detect pancreatic cancer earlier, potentially improving survival rates for one of the deadliest cancers.

  • Type 1 diabetes: Hybrid closed-loop and open-loop systems compared

    People with type 1 diabetes require continuous insulin treatment and must regularly measure their glucose levels. With open-loop therapies, insulin administration is manually controlled, while hybrid closed-loop systems automatically regulate insulin delivery. A study showed that hybrid closed-loop systems offer improved long-term blood sugar values (HbA1c levels) and a lower risk of hypoglycemic coma, but lead to a higher rate of diabetic ketoacidosis.

  • Pancreatic cancer immune map provides clues for precision treatment targeting

    Pancreatic cancer patients may benefit from future precision treatments as a new study shows how some tumors may potentially be more susceptible to macrophage-based therapies, and clues behind why these tumors don't respond to existing immunotherapies.

  • Protein degradation strategy offers new hope in cancer therapy

    A team of scientists has used a novel approach to identify protein degraders that target Pin1, a protein involved in pancreatic cancer development.

  • Researchers show how gut hormones control aging in flies and how it relates to human biology

    The discovery of a gut-to-brain regulation pathway in flies calls for additional consideration on how certain medications, especially GLP-1 agonists, can be used to treat obesity and diabetes in humans.

  • A new injectable to prevent and treat hypoglycemia

    People with diabetes take insulin to lower high blood sugar. However, if glucose levels plunge too low -- from taking too much insulin or not eating enough sugar -- people can experience hypoglycemia, which can lead to dizziness, cognitive impairment, seizures or comas. To prevent and treat this condition, researchers report encapsulating the hormone glucagon. In mouse trials, the nanocapsules activated when blood sugar levels dropped dangerously low and quickly restored glucose levels.

  • Pancreatic cancer: Study finds most early staging inaccurate

    Staging of patients with early pancreatic cancer is inaccurate as much as 80% of the time, according to a new study. The finding underscores the urgent need for advancements in diagnostic technology and staging, which could significantly alter early pancreatic cancer treatment and research.

  • How thyroid hormone fuels the drive to explore

    Research in mice sheds light on how thyroid hormone alters wiring in the brain. Findings reveal that thyroid hormone syncs up the brain and body to drive exploratory behavior. Researchers say their work could illuminate new treatments for certain psychiatric conditions.

  • Link discovered between sensory neurons and breast cancer metastasis

    Researchers found a 'neuro-cancer axis' may promote spread of breast cancer. They also found that an FDA-approved anti-nausea medication may prevent it.

  • New tools reveal neuropeptides, not neurotransmitters, encode danger in the brain

    Scientists created new tools to study brain messenger proteins called neuropeptides in the brains of behaving animals, discovering they are the primary messengers in the fear circuit in mouse brains, and that multiple neuropeptides work together to achieve this--explaining why some clinical trials that target just one neuropeptide have failed. The new tools and findings can be used to direct drug development for fear-related neurological disorders like PTSD and anxiety, design better painkillers, and uncover new information for other neural circuits in the brain.

  • New 3D technique reveals precancerous pancreatic lesions

    Researchers have developed a 3D genomic profiling technique to identify small precancerous lesions in the pancreas -- called pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasias (PanINs) -- that lead to one of the most aggressive, deadly pancreatic cancers.

  • How targeted nutrients can fight cancer

    An international research team has discovered a new way to effectively treat cancer, by using nutrients to reactivate suppressed metabolic pathways in cancer cells.

  • Alarming trends call for action to define the future role of food in nation's health

    The cost of nutritious food and the lack of access to it are of significant concern to U.S. consumers. New public opinion poll and expert analysis reflect crucial need to make healthy food accessible to avert projected crisis in cardiovascular disease incidence, costs.

  • New therapeutic targets to fight type 2 diabetes

    One of the most confusing aspects for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus is that they have high fasting glucose levels. This is because in these insulin-resistant patients, glucose production by the liver is triggered, a process that is still full of questions for the scientific community. Now, a review article presents a comprehensive overview of the most important advances in understanding this mechanism.

  • Breaking down barriers: ROCK2 inhibition facilitates drug delivery in fibrotic pancreatic cancer

    Scientists developed a human pancreatic cancer fibrotic barrier 3D cell-culture model to assess treatments for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. By targeting the ROCK2 pathway, they achieved a notable decrease in fibrosis and enhanced tissue permeability to drugs, offering promising avenues for overcoming treatment obstacles in pancreatic cancer.

  • Neuropathy very common, underdiagnosed

    Neuropathy, the nerve damage that causes pain and numbness in the feet and hands and can eventually lead to falls, infection and even amputation, is very common and underdiagnosed, according to a new study.

  • Age-related changes in fibroblast cells promote pancreatic cancer growth and spread

    Older people may be at greater risk of developing pancreatic cancer and have poorer prognoses because of age-related changes in cells in the pancreas called fibroblasts, according to new research.

  • AI model as diabetes early warning system when driving

    Based solely on driving behavior and head/gaze motion, the newly developed tool recognizes low blood sugar levels.

  • New medicine can create a new life for diabetes patients -- without needles

    Researchers have found a new way to supply the body with insulin. The medication that can be taken orally has already been tested on baboons, in which it was found to lower the blood sugar levels without causing hypoglycemia. The new insulin is ready to be tested on humans in 2025. If all goes well, diabetics are facing an easier life without injections.

  • Deregulation of alternative RNA splicing promotes pancreatic cancer progression and metastasis

    In a new study, researchers demonstrate that deregulation of a protein called RBFOX2, involved in RNA splicing, contributes to the progression and metastasis of pancreatic cancer.

  • How drugs can target the thick 'scar tissue' of pancreatic cancer

    Researchers discovered how anti-cancer drugs called HDAC inhibitors help treat pancreatic cancer by altering scar tissue (fibroblast) development. The findings suggest HDAC inhibitors could be powerful tools in fighting pancreatic cancer -- alone and in combination with other therapies.