Alvin C. Powers, MD, Joe C. Davis Professor of Biomedical Science and professor of Medicine, Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, and co-director of the Vanderbilt Diabetes Center (VDC) at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, has received the Roy O. Greep Award for Outstanding Research from the Endocrine Society.
This award, which recognizes meritorious contributions to endocrinology research, is one of the Endocrine Society’s prestigious 2026 Laureate Awards. Established in 1944, the Laureate Awards recognize the highest achievements in the endocrinology field, including groundbreaking research and innovations in clinical care.
“This honor is a testament to the years of innovative, transformative research conducted by Dr. Powers,” said Bryan Harris, MD, MPH, MMHC, interim chair of the Department of Medicine. “Dr. Powers and his team have fundamentally reshaped our understanding of islet biology and its role in diabetes.
“This pioneering work has not only inspired further research within Vanderbilt but has also had a profound ripple effect across the global scientific community,” Harris continued. “The Vanderbilt community is honored to count such an extraordinary and accomplished physician-scientist among us.”
Powers co-directs the Powers and Brissova Research Group at Vanderbilt with Marcela Brissova, PhD. By studying the human pancreas and islets from organ donors with diabetes, Powers and his research colleagues have defined distinct molecular alterations in different forms of human diabetes, including Type 1 diabetes, Type 2 diabetes, cystic fibrosis-related diabetes, a form of monogenic diabetes and post-transplant diabetes.
Pancreatic islets are highly specialized mini-organs that regulate blood glucose by secreting insulin, glucagon and other hormones in response to physiologic stimuli such as glucose. A deficiency or a dysfunction of the insulin-producing beta cells of the islet is critical to the development of all forms of diabetes.
The research of the Powers and Brissova Research Group is supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Veterans Affairs Research Service, and The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust.
Powers was named director of the Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center in 2005, and director of the VDC in 2007. He served as chief of the Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism in the Department of Medicine from 2010 to 2025.
Powers has served on several Endocrine Society committees and task forces and is co-author of the Society’s recent Scientific Statement on potential research directions to spur development of new and improved treatment options for Type 1 diabetes.
The Endocrine Society is a global community of physicians and scientists dedicated to accelerating scientific breakthroughs and improving patient health and well-being.
