The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation announced today in a press release that it will begin working with The Johnson & Johnson Corporate Office of Science and Technology, and its affiliates, to speed the development of drug targets and pathways to promote the survival and function of insulin-producing cells in people who have diabetes. The program will look to fund research at academic centers around the world that could eventually lead to novel drug targets and industry collaborations for the treatment of type 1 diabetes.
The joint program will solicit grant proposals from academia and medical research foundations for one- or two-year research projects. The research will focus on agents and compounds that safely promote survival and function of insulin producing beta cells. Preserving or maintaining beta cell mass and activity in people with type 1 diabetes can reduce insulin requirements, make controlling the disease easier and more effective, and lower the risk of both short and long-term complications of the disease.
The program aims to contribute to medical research funding in the discovery of better treatments for diabetes, facilitating cooperation between the pharmaceutical industry and universities with the potential to lead to drug targets and products.
