Emory Global Diabetes Research receives $22 million in grant funding for groundbreaking type 3 diabetes research

Emory Global Diabetes Research Center (EGDRC) has received a $22 million grant from the National Institute on Aging. This grant will support the South Asia Cardiometabolic Risk Reduction (Precision-CARRS) cohort investigating the association between diabetes and Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

Research shows that people with diabetes, especially type 2 diabetes, face an increased and accelerated risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and other dementias.

In recent years, researchers have coined the term “type 3 diabetes” to describe the theory that insulin resistance and dysfunction of insulin-like growth factors in the brain may contribute to the development of Alzheimer's disease. Introduced. However, further research is needed to better understand the relationship between diabetes and Alzheimer's disease in order to improve detection and enable timely intervention.

Dr. KM Venkat Narayan, Executive Director and Principal Investigator of EGDRC, said: “This funding brings a new dimension to the large-scale CARRS program, which will help us understand the natural history of dementia and the links between cardiometabolic diseases and dementia. It's going to be a deep dive.”

The CARRS Cohort Study began 17 years ago as a population-based cohort of South Asians to address existing and emerging questions related to cardiometabolic diseases. Since its inception, the CARRS cohort has grown to track a diverse population-based sample of more than 20,000 South Asian adults aged 20 years and older.

This grant represents a new phase of research, Precision-CARRS-Brain, conceptualized at the 2023 CARRS Annual Conference in Kochi, India, where researchers from around the world brainstormed and We discussed how to move forward.

“Understanding the relationship between diabetes and Alzheimer's disease has the potential to revolutionize the way we approach both conditions,” says co-partner Alan Levey, MD, director of the Goizueta Alzheimer's Disease Research Center. “Our collaboration, supported by this significant grant, aims to uncover these connections and pave the way for innovative treatments that address the root causes of neurodegenerative diseases. ”

Driving this effort along with Narayan and Levey is a global, multidisciplinary team of principal investigators from India. Suvarna Aradi, MD, Professor of Neurology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences. Dr. Dorairaj Prabhakaran, Executive Director, Center for Chronic Disease Management; Dr. Viswanathan Mohan, President and Head of Diabetes Research, Madras Diabetes Research Foundation (MDRF).

“Our collaboration with Emory began about 20 years ago and continues to evolve,” says Prabhakaran. “With the incredible expertise of the Precision-CARRS-Brain team, understanding the link between cardiometabolic disease and Alzheimer's disease will not only inform early intervention and prevention, but also help develop innovative treatments. It can also help improve patient outcomes at local or national healthcare levels, as well as globally.”

The CARRS annual conference is critical for collaboration and brainstorming for future research. This year, the 2024 conference will be held on Emory's campus from October 1 to 3 for the first time since the program began nearly 20 years ago. Nearly 30 researchers from India will join EGDRC to discuss the next big thing, recent successes, and what the future holds for cardiometabolic and diabetes research.