Joslin Diabetes Research Foundation Beta Cell Replacement Innovation Awards

JDRF provides seed funding for highly innovative research with significant potential to accelerate the mission of JDRF. Proposals should address key outstanding questions and have the potential to lead to a change in the current paradigm or conventional wisdom and/or lead to a groundbreaking discovery. Preliminary data is not required in the proposal but the underlying premise, goal, or hypothesis must be plausible and testable and the proposal must be focused with a well- defined goal that is achievable within the timeframe of the award. The JDRF Beta Cell Replacement program strategy is designed to achieve the ultimate goal of creating a product with a safe renewable beta cell source capable of restoring glucose control and delivering long-term insulin independence without the need for chronic immunosuppression therapy. Priority areas include (1) Cell source: Identify the best cell source and composition;Reprogram somatic cells in vitro to functional insulin-producing cells;Leverage early clinical trial data to improve next-generation products (2)Cell survival and immune protection:Bioengineered delivery devices (encapsulation, scaffolds, hydrogels); Strategies to mitigate fibrosis and increase oxygenation; Beta cell survival agents to help preserve graft function; Device-less approaches include cell modification by genome editing and combination of immune and beta cell replacement therapies (3) Accelerate clinical translation: Standardize reagents: define preclinical animal models most predictive of human responses;Establish implantation site: engineer extrahepatic implantation sites to promote engraftment via scaffolds.