LGR4-ECD: A potential therapeutic for type 1 diabetes-related beta cell stress
Forecasted
LGR4-ECD: A potential therapeutic for type 1 diabetes-related beta cell stress supports Joanna Filipowska’s research on LGR4-ECD to reduce beta-cell stress and preserve insulin secretion in type 1 diabetes.
Funder: Diabetes Research Connection
Due Dates (Anticipated): July 2027 (Application deadline)
Funding Amounts: $25,000–$75,000 for one year; graduate students eligible for up to $50,000
Summary: DRC supports early-career type 1 diabetes research, including Joanna Filipowska’s investigation of LGR4-ECD to protect insulin-producing beta cells.
Key Information: Applicants must be early-career scientists in the United States conducting research at U.S. institutions.
Description
Diabetes Research Connection (DRC) supports novel, discovery-stage type 1 diabetes research through a donor-driven, peer-reviewed funding model. Its seed grants help early-career scientists test concepts in cure, care, complications, and prevention, with the goal of generating evidence that can support larger grants.
This active project, led by Joanna Filipowska, PhD, at City of Hope, investigates whether LGR4-ECD can reduce pancreatic beta-cell stress and preserve insulin secretion. Beta-cell stress contributes to the immune response that destroys these cells in type 1 diabetes. The project tests LGR4-ECD in cell culture and animal models against diabetes-related stressors, targeting a pathway associated with increased cell death and reduced replication and function. It is listed under RFA-2024-1; the application information below concerns DRC’s broader research funding program.
