Diabetes News You Can Use
Tirzepatide may outperforms conventional care
Tirzepatide has shown greater efficacy than intensified conventional care in adults with early type 2 diabetes not controlled by metformin, according to a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The study found tirzepatide led to better improvements in A1C levels, weight and waist circumference, with more participants achieving normoglycemia. The study was funded by Eli Lilly, the maker of tirzepatide.
Full Story: HealthDay News (5/27)
High food coloring intake may raise type 2 diabetes risk
A study in the journal Diabetes Care found a 38% higher risk of type 2 diabetes with higher consumption of food coloring additives, compared with lower intakes. The study, which involved 108,723 participants, found that both natural and synthetic food colorings were associated with the increased risk.
Full Story: Medscape (5/28)
Study: 8,500 daily steps may help maintain weight loss
A study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health found that taking about 8,500 steps a day may be optimal for maintaining weight loss. Researchers reviewed data from nearly 4,000 adults and found that people in lifestyle programs who increased their daily step count to around 8,500 during the weight-loss phase were more successful at maintaining weight loss than those who averaged about 7,200 steps a day.
Full Story: HealthDay News (5/11)
PCOS renamed PMOS to better reflect metabolic nature
Polycystic ovary syndrome has been renamed polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome to more accurately reflect the condition’s characteristics and address the inaccuracies of the previous term. The change, published in The Lancet and presented at the European Congress of Endocrinology, follows more than a decade of debate and consultation with about 22,000 stakeholders worldwide.
Full Story: STAT (5/12)
Orforglipron effects comparable for older adults
Orforglipron was associated with meaningful reductions in body weight and A1C levels among adults aged 65 and older, according to data presented at the European Congress on Obesity. The once-daily medication had similar efficacy and safety in older adults as in the broader population, with no increased risk of fractures or renal events.
Full Story: Medscape (5/12), Healio (free registration) (5/11)
Islet cell composition may be linked to diabetes risk
A study in Nature Communications from the Integrated Islet Distribution Program analyzes pancreatic islet cells from 299 organ donors without diabetes, uncovering significant variations in endocrine cell composition based on sex and ethnicity. A higher genetic risk for type 2 diabetes correlated with a greater percentage of delta cells, which suppress insulin secretion, providing insights into diabetes pathophysiology and potential therapeutic development. Read more from Vanderbilt Health.
Type 2 diabetes in young adulthood tied to worse glycemic control
Young adults with type 2 diabetes had worse glycemic control and higher obesity rates than older adults, according to a study in the Journal of the Endocrine Society. Based on data from the Utah Diabetes Database, younger adults had a mean BMI of 34 compared to 32 for older adults, and their average A1C was 7.8% compared with 7.3%.
Full Story: Endocrinology Advisor (5/12)
Orforglipron may maintain weight loss after injectables
Patients who switched from injectable tirzepatide or semaglutide to oral orforglipron maintained significant weight loss, according to findings from the ATTAIN-MAINTAIN trial presented at the European Congress on Obesity and published in Nature Medicine. Orforglipron, a once-daily oral GLP-1 receptor agonist, preserved 74.7% of weight loss from tirzepatide and 79.3% from semaglutide.
Full Story: Medscape (5/15)
Obesity rates slow in some high-income countries
A study in Nature shows that obesity rates are plateauing or declining in high-income countries such as France, Italy and Portugal, but are rising in low- and middle-income countries. The analysis of obesity trends from 1980 to 2024 highlights the need for prevention despite the potential impact of obesity drugs. The US remains an outlier with high obesity rates, particularly among adults.
Full Story: STAT (5/13)
GLP-1 gene therapy trial approved in Europe
Fractyl Health has received regulatory approval in the Netherlands to begin the first clinical trial of a gene therapy for type 2 diabetes. The Phase I/II trial will test the safety and efficacy of RJVA-001, a GLP-1 receptor agonist gene therapy delivered to the pancreas by endoscopic infusion.
Full Story: Inside Precision Medicine (5/12)
Diabetes Research Center
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DRC Affiliate Megan Capozzi Receives Chair of Medicine Scholar Award
Congratulations to DRC affiliate Megan Capozzi who has been awarded the Chair of Medicine Scholars Award. Established in 2013, the Chair of Medicine Scholars Awards assist highly qualified and meritorious trainees in their transition to the roles of physician-scientist and principal investigator.
Congratulations to this year’s funding awardees
Congratulations to this year’s funding awardees: Dr. Nicole Liachko, Dr. Elizabeth Rhea, and Dr. Dennis Wang have been awarded Pilot and Feasibility awards. Dr. Courtney Glavin has been awarded the New Investigator Award and Dr. Huaqing Zheng has been awarded the McAbee Postdoctoral Fellowship award.
DRC Affiliate Ian de Boer to Give Garabed Eknoyan Endowed Lectureship
DRC affiliate Ian de Boer, professor (Nephrology) will present the Garabed Eknoyan Endowed Lectureship, “KDIGO Guidelines Decoded: What They Mean for CKD Management in Practice” at the American Society of Nephrology Kidney Week. Named in honor of Garabed Eknoyan, MD, an esteemed researcher, educator, and clinician, the lecture recognizes individuals who have made an impact on or dedicated their lives to the kidney community. More information here.
Congratulations to this year’s funding awardees
Congratulations to this year’s funding awardees: Dr. Nicholas Chavkin and Dr. Stephen McCartney have been awarded Pilot and Feasibility awards and Ms. Jocelyn Cervantes has been awarded the Stroum Graduate Fellowship award.
NIDDK 75th Anniversary
In celebration of the 75th anniversary of NIDDK, Diabetes Care and Diabetes have published a compendium of ten articles that highlight just a few of the major contributions NIIDK has fostered through its support of research. These articles provide a broad, but clearly not complete, view of the results that have been achieved through their fostering of science across the country. Included amongst these is a paper by members of NIDDK about the research centers including the Diabetes Research Centers Program. There is also an editorial that celebrates NIDDK and at the same times raises concerns about the future of research and public health related to diabetes given the current discussion about the funding and restructuring of NIDDK and CDC.