Diabetes Research Center member Yumi Imai, MD received a four-year $710,000 VA Merit Award. Imai will continue to build on previous research to investigate type 2 diabetes treatment by identifying correlations between lipolysis and beta cell dysfunction.
Previously, Imai has found that lipolysis is able to mobilize fats in tissue islets affected by type 2 diabetes and beta cell dysfunction. These studies suggest that dysfunctional pancreatic beta cells contribute to type 2 diabetes; however, the mechanism behind the decline in the function of these cells is still unknown. Imai’s new research will assist with the understanding of the pancreatic beta cell failure.
