Research Partnerships

The Strelitz Diabetes Research Institute is involved with other universities, biotechnology firms and major pharmaceutical companies through the "SPIRIT" program as well as our neurovascular and neuroendocrine programs. These collaborations seek to explore and develop therapeutics that "stimulate pancreatic islet regeneration for the treatment of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes," identify factors conducive to impaired neurovascular function and explore new therapeutic measures for neuropathy and neuroendocrine tumors. The SDRI has partnered with GMP Companies, Inc. and Procter & Gamble and is making exciting progress and significant investigational milestones in the area of pancreatic islet regeneration.

The SDI research in collaboration with our strategic partners of GMP Companies, Inc. and Procter & Gamble have conducted Phase 2 trials with INGAP peptide seeking trends in efficacy for Type 1 and Type 2 patients at 20 sites nationwide.

The Strelitz Diabetes Institutes is a contributor to Endotext.org a web-based source of information on endocrine disease directed to physicians worldwide. It provides comprehensive material encompassing the area of Clinical Endocrinology and the most current information on manifestations, diagnosis and treatment of endocrine diseases. In addition to contributing to Endotext.org, the Strelitz Diabetes Institutes collaborates with Inter Science Institute for development of hormone assays to aid in the diagnosis and management of endocrine diseases.

Point of Contact:
Dr. Henri Parson (ParsonHK@EVMS.edu)

The Strelitz Diabetes Institutes is pursuing NIH- funding for community-based research in collaboration with Old Dominion University and Norfolk State University to eliminate health disparities through partnerships between minority health populations in the area of diabetes and its related long-term complications.

Point of Contact:
Dr. Vinik (VinikAI@EVMS.edu) and Dr. Jacot (JacotJL@EVMS.edu)

The SDI is involved in several research partnerships with leading companies that provide state-of-the-art technology for point-of-service neurodiagnostics. SDI’s involvement with these companies helps develop telemedicine systems, provide clinical correlative data for analysis algorithms to be used in biomedical signal processing. These alliances foster the development of innovative neurological diagnostic and therapeutic modalities that maximize the quality of care available for diabetic patients with neuropathy. SDI efforts in concert with collaborative partnerships help develop technology that is easy-to-use, cost-effective, and provides a tool to assist in the early diagnosis and management of peripheral and autonomic neuropathies to fulfill an unmet medical need.

The SDI is involved in exploring novel therapeutic modalities for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes and will seek strategic pharmaceutical partners that allow the opportunity to investigate combination therapy with distinct mechanisms-of-action to obtain additive or synergistic beneficial effects. The therapeutic modalities are investigated using a proprietary murine transgenic line that exhibits resistance to experimentally induced diabetes and on other established animal models of diabetes. SDI will establish proof-of-principle studies and toxicology profile of prospective novel antidiabetic agents for subsequent clinical trial evaluation.

Corporate Partnerships:
NeuroMetrix Inc. holds a proprietary technology platform of NC-stat Biosensors and has core competency in biomedical engineering, neurophysiology and information technology to develop and commercialize a line of novel neurological diagnostic tests and therapeutic interventions.

ANSAR, Inc. is a medical device firm that designs, develops, produces and sells autonomic nervous system (ANS) monitoring equipment. Its patented technology enables non-invasive, simultaneous, independent monitoring of both ANS branches.

Takeda Pharmaceuticals, NA provides innovative products that improve healthcare.
Glaxo Smith Kline for the development of new agents for diabetic neuropathies and insulin sensitization

Lilly for the development of agents that have the potential to reverse diabetic neuropathies

Astra Zeneca for the development of agents that alter lipid metabolism and have the potential fro reducing inflammation.

Novartis for new agents in the management of neuroendocrine tumors

Domestic and International Academic Collaborative Partnerships:

University of Hong Kong: In collaboration with Dr. Juliana Chan and a multidisciplinary research team at Honk Kong University , the SDRI is exploring the development of beta cells for insulin replacement therapy. The use of both in vitro and in vivo models are being explored to use INGAP as a growth factor to enhance the differentiation, maturation, and expansion of islet cell clusters as an alternative or synergistic means to increase graft survival and reduce conventional immunosuppressive agents.

MCGill University: Continuing collaborative efforts with Dr. Lawrence Rosenberg explore the neurotrophic properties of INGAP. Preliminary studies have demonstrated that INGAP administered in vivo can induce neurite outgrowth in explants of dorsal root ganglion cells.

University of Miami: In collaboration with Dr. Camillo Ricordi of the Diabetes Research Institute at the University of Miami, the Strelitz Diabetes Research Institute is exploring the direct molecular effects of INGAP of pancreatic islets and possible beneficial effects to increase the success of islet transplantation.