The third in the series of diabetes conferences was hosted jointly by the Helmholtz Zentrum München and Nature Medicine and once again confirmed the success of the format. In a relaxed and informal setting, leading experts as well as up-and-coming scientists presented and discussed the latest research approaches and findings with a view to jointly developing new strategies to combat the widespread disease diabetes mellitus. Conference organizer Matthias Tschöp, Research Director of the Helmholtz Diabetes Center (HDC) at the Helmholtz Zentrum München, was pleased with how the conference went: “We are delighted and proud that, year after year, we are able to draw the leading experts in diabetes research to Munich. That underlines the attraction of our location and validates our event concept.”
This year, the Novo Nordisk Young Investigator Diabetes (HeIDi) Award for young scientists who have made outstanding contributions to the field of diabetes research went to Matthew Rodeheffer, Associate Professor of Comparative Medicine and Assistant Professor of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at Yale University. Rodeheffer is particularly interested in the molecular mechanisms that regulate fat mass. "The award honors young scientists for their excellent research results, giving them recognition and raising their visibility among their peers. Moreover, the awardwas established to encourage young talent and in so doing lay the foundations for future success,” said Ulrich Stilz, Vice President of Novo Nordisk.
The Helmholtz Diabetes Lecture recognizes the outstanding achievements of a leading scientist, and this year was given by Bruce Spiegelman from the Harvard Medical School. One of the main topics he addressed was the different control mechanisms involved in thermogenesis (i.e. burning calories to generate heat). Spiegelman is renowned for discovering a new type of fatty tissue known as “beige fat”. In his lecture, he outlined the probable function of beige fat and the latest research findings in this area. It will be interesting to find out how these will have changed come next year’s conference, the fourth in the series, which will take place from 17 to 19 September 2016.
Further Information:
Conference-Website Helmholtz-Nature Medicine Diabetes Conference