Noteworthy Events

6th Annual Diabetes Research Symposium

to Focus on Inflammation

More than 125 Northeast Ohio Physician Scientists Expected

The Diabetes Association of Greater Cleveland’s Dietrich Diabetes Research Institute (DDRI) and Case Western Reserve School of Medicine will present their 6th annual Diabetes Research Symposium Friday, November 13, 2009 at Executive Caterers at Landerhaven from 8:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  The focus of this year’s Symposium, “Novel Mechanisms of Diabetes Complications,” will be on the development of micro- and macrovascular diabetic complications.  Particular emphasis will be on the role inflammation plays in the long-term complications of diabetes, a major source of morbidity.

Each year, this Symposium provides a forum for investigators to exchange information about diabetes research, initiate opportunities for collaborations, partner with other institutions and expand ideas about the future direction of diabetes research in Northeast Ohio.  This event will include internationally recognized investigators with expertise in vascular complications of diabetes.  Guest speakers will be:

• George King, MD, Director of Research, Section  Head, Vascular Cell Biology, Joslin Diabetes Center, Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, "Diabetic complications : its mechanisms and potential treatments beyond oxidative stress"

• Timothy J.  Lyons, MD, FRCP, Professor and Chief, Endocrinology & Diabetes, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and Director, Harold Hamm Oklahoma Diabetes Center,  "Lipids and Lipoproteins in Diabetic Retinopathy"

• Jerry Nadler, MD, Director, Strelitz Diabetes Center, Professor & Chair, Dept. of Internal Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School, "Inflammatory Mechanisms Linking Metabolic and Vascular Complications of Diabetes"

• Timothy S. Kern, PhD, Professor and Director, Diabetes Research Center, CWRU "Role of Inflammation in the Development of Microvascular Complications"

The day will include poster sessions showcasing the variety, quantity and quality of diabetes-related research being conducted in Northeast Ohio.  These poster sessions help promote networking across institutional and disciplinary barriers.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) AMA PRA Category 1 CreditsTM will be available. Support for the 6th Annual Diabetes Research Symposium has been provided in the form of educational grants from Merck & Co., Inc., Sanofi-aventis U.S. and Pfizer, Inc.

Established in 2003 at the Diabetes Association of Greater Cleveland by Nancy and Richard Dietrich, the Dietrich Diabetes Research Institute serves as the research arm of DAGC.  DDRI works to strengthen local diabetes research presence, facilitate collaboration and networking, and help enhance the overall quality of clinical care for people in Northeast Ohio with diabetes.  For more information about DDRI, visit www.ddri.org or call 216-591-0800.

Founded in 1843, the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine is the largest medical research institution in Ohio and 12th largest among the nation’s medical schools for research funding from the National Institutes of Health.  Annually, the School of Medicine trains more than 600 MD and MD/PhD students.  The School’s Western Reserve curriculum includes research and scholarship, clinical mastery, leadership, and civic professionalism to prepare students for the practice of evidence-based medicine in the rapidly changing health care environment of the 21st century. The School of Medicine’s primary clinical affiliate is University Hospitals Case Medical Center and the school is additionally affiliated with MetroHealth Medical Center, the Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and the Cleveland Clinic Foundation’s Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University.

Contact:  Stacey Hader Epstein

Diabetes Association of Greater Cleveland

216-591-0800, ext. 26

Conference Website