Division of Diabetes Endocrinology and Metabolism

From left, Alvin Powers, MD, Joe C. Davis Professor of Biomedical Science and professor of Medicine and Molecular Physiology and Biophysics; Barbara Gisella Carranza Leon, MD, associate professor of Medicine and interim clinical and senior division director of the Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism; and David Nathan, MD, founder and director of the Diabetes Center and Diabetes Research Center at Massachusetts General Hospital. (photo by Susan Urmy)
April 23, 2025

Top scientist shares long view on diabetes research and treatment

The number of adults living with diabetes has surpassed 800 million, and the World Health Organization has called the escalating prevalence of Type 2 diabetes an epidemic.

By Jill Clendening
February 24, 2025

Leadership announced for Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism

An interim plan has been announced to fill the roles held by Alvin C. Powers, MD, in Vanderbilt’s Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism.

By Jill Clendening
Danielle Dean, PhD
October 16, 2024

Danielle Dean receives award for excellence in the field of islet research

Dean identified a liver-alpha cell axis (LACA), a crosstalk between liver glucagon signaling and alpha cell sensing of amino acids.

By Jill Clendening
July 3, 2024

Couple’s legacy of giving results in transformative change in endocrinology at Vanderbilt

“As I worked at Vanderbilt, I became so attached to the division, and when I had the ability to do it, I wanted to give back.”

By Jill Clendening
March 28, 2024

Teams to create one-stop resource for human pancreatic data to foster diabetes research

Leading investigators in diabetes, pancreas and islet biology, and computational biology have received $12.5 million in two five-year awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to create the world’s first, integrated knowledge base of human-derived tissue- and cellular-level pancreatic information to support innovative, collaborative and reproducible research.

By Jill Clendening
February 2, 2024

Study links small pancreas size to faster progression to stage 3 Type 1 diabetes

The study findings, published in the journal Diabetes Care, suggest that pancreas imaging can have a benefit in tracking disease development and recruitment for preventive and therapeutic trials.

By Jill Clendening
January 4, 2024

Study shows liraglutide results in increased insulin sensitivity independent of weight loss

By Jill Clendening
December 4, 2023

Study links gene network and pancreatic beta cell defects to Type 2 diabetes

A comprehensive study that integrates multiple analytic approaches has linked a regulatory gene network and functional defects in insulin-producing pancreatic beta cells to Type 2 diabetes.
By Leigh MacMillan and Jill Clendening
November 6, 2023

Powers receives prestigious Veterans Affairs Middleton Award

Alvin C. Powers, MD, Joe C. Davis Professor of Biologic Science and professor of Medicine, Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, has received the 2023 William S. Middleton Award, the highest honor awarded by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Biomedical Laboratory Research and Development Service.
By Jill Clendening
October 17, 2023

Powers announces plan to step down from key diabetes leadership roles

Alvin C. Powers, MD, has announced plans to step down effective July 1, 2024, as director of the Vanderbilt Diabetes Center, director of the Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center, and chief of the Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism.
By Jill Clendening
October 17, 2023

Tirzepatide trial shows additional 21.1% weight loss following intensive lifestyle intervention

A Vanderbilt clinical trial evaluating the injectable prescription medication tirzepatide, showed an additional 21.1% weight loss after intensive lifestyle intervention in adults with obesity or who were overweight with weight-related comorbidities, excluding Type 2 diabetes.
By Jill Clendening
September 28, 2023

Drug trial shows reduced abnormal bone formation in those with fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva

A Vanderbilt clinical trial evaluating the investigational drug garetosmab has shown that it reduced soft-tissue flare-ups significantly and prevented new areas of abnormal bone formation in patients with fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva.
By Jill Clendening
September 12, 2023

Takkouche named associate chief medical officer for Wilson and Sumner County regions

Sahar Takkouche, MD, director of the Vanderbilt Weight Loss Center in Wilson County, has been named to the role of associate chief medical officer for Wilson and Sumner County regions.
By John Howser
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