First Patient in Colorado Receives New Therapy for Delay of T1D Onset at the BDC

New Therapy First to Target Type 1 Diabetes Disease Process

For more information on screening and onset of T1D, see Ask the Experts, a program run by the BDC.

Tzield, which was approved by the FDA in 2022, is the first drug on the market indicated to delay the full onset of Type 1 Diabetes. This novel drug is available for patients in Stage-2  Type 1 Diabetes as a 1-day infusion series. As part of its ongoing commitment diabetes treatment and prevention, the Barbara Davis Center was the first site in Colorado to infuse a patient with Tzield. The Center's new Early T1D Clinic now offer this therapy in addition to screening, monitoring, long-term follow-up, and education as patients navigate the onset of T1D.

Full Story

Dr. Garg Discusses Lower Insulin Prices on CBS News Colorado.

He says it's "high time" insulin prices are lowered

Dr. Garg joined CBS Colorado to discuss insulin prices and why it's time manufacturers work on driving down prices.

Watch the Video

Effect of Verapamil on Pancreatic Beta Cell Function in Newly Diagnosed Pediatric Type 1 Diabetes

Does once-daily oral verapamil preserve pancreatic beta cell function in children and adolescents with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes?

Author Contributions from the BDC's Gregory Forlenza, MD and Laurel Messer, PhD RN

In a randomized clinical trial including 88 children and adolescents with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes, C-peptide levels (a measure of pancreatic beta cell function) measured during a mixed-meal tolerance test 52 weeks after diagnosis were 30% higher with verapamil compared with placebo. The percentage of participants with a 52-week peak C-peptide level of 0.2 pmol/mL or greater was 95% in the verapamil group vs 71% in the placebo group. Verapamil had few adverse events.

Full Story

Effect of Tight Glycemic Control on Pancreatic Beta Cell Function in Newly Diagnosed Pediatric Type 1 Diabetes: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Does near normalization of glucose levels preserve pancreatic beta cell function in youth with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes?

Author Contributions from the BDC's Gregory Forlenza, MD and Laurel Messer, PhD RN

In a randomized clinical trial including 113 youths aged 7 to 17 years with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes, there was no significant difference in C-peptide levels measured during a mixed-meal tolerance test (a measure of pancreatic beta cell function) 52 weeks after diagnosis between intensive management and standard care groups. Mean time in the target range of 70 to 180 mg/dL, measured with continuous glucose monitoring, at 52 weeks was 78% with intensive management, which included automated insulin delivery, compared with 64% with standard care.

Full Story

Smith Lab Hones in on B Cells Role in Diabetes

How Can the Body’s Immune Cells Cause Type 1 Diabetes?

Dr. Laurel Messer discusses greater engagement with diabetes care linked to lower glucose levels for young people

Greater engagement with diabetes care linked to lower glucose levels for young people

Read the full journal article in Diabetic Medicine.

Dr. Laurel Messer discussed the impacts on young people of feeling more engaged with their diabetes management. The findings were from a 2-week observational study of adolescents with Type 1 Diabetes that analyzed the biopsychosocial factors that could influence daily engagement with managing T1D.

Full Story

Dr. Marian Rewer's Research Suggests SARS-CoV-2 Infection Not Associated with Autoimmunity Related to T1D Development

SARS-CoV-2 Infection Not Associated with Autoimmunity Related to T1D Development

Read the full journal article in JAMA.

Dr Marian Rewers discussed new research that indicates a lack of association between infection with SARS-CoV-2 and development of Type 1 Diabetes. The study, which the Barbara Davis Center collaborated on, screened 50,000 youths across both Colorado and Bavaria, Germany to evaluate to potential that Covid-19 may trigger an autoimmune response that leads to development of T1D.

Full Story

Use Your Blood Glucose Meter to Help Improve Your Health

Our very own peds nurses Ashlee Ernst and Betsy Otten wrote this piece entitled “Use your blood glucose meter to help improve your health” published on Diatribe.

Full Story

T1GER Study Shows Benefit of Golimumab in Newly Diagnosed T1D

 Dr. Andrea Steck and her team participated in a phase II, multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled trial examining the effects of golimumab, a TNF-α inhibitor, in pediatric type 1 diabetes (T1D). Children and young adults with newly diagnosed T1D had better endogenous insulin production and less exogenous insulin use after taking golimumab for 52 weeks, compared with those who took placebo. Mean 4-hour C-peptide area under the curve, as well as the number of those who had a partial-remission response, were higher in those who took golimumab, compared with those who took placebo.

Full Story

Free CU Anschutz COVID-19 Antibody Tests to Fuel Diabetes Study

Barbara Davis Center wants to know: Does SARS-CoV-2 trigger diabetes?

Using a high-quality antibody test produced within their own walls, researchers at the Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes (BDC) aim to answer questions about COVID-19’s effect on their patients – including whether SARS-CoV-2 can trigger one of the nation’s top chronic diseases.

The antibody test, created in the lab of Liping Yu, MD, was added this month to the Autoimmunity Screening for Kids (ASK) Program at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. Open to all Colorado youth under 18, the ASK Program offers type 1 diabetes and celiac disease screenings. Parents now can also opt to have their kids tested for COVID-19 antibodies.

Full Story

Q&A: Can the coronavirus trigger type 1 diabetes in kids?

The Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes saw a 40% increase in Type 1 Diabetes during the pandemic.

9News Q&A: Can the Coronavirus Trigger Type 1 Diabetes in Kids?

The Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes saw a 40% increase in Type 1 Diabetes during the pandemic

Diabetes treatment centers saw a surge in type 1 diabetes patients that may correlate with the coronavirus pandemic.That's according to Dr. Brigitte Frohnert, associate professor at the Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes at University of Colorado-Anshutz. 

9NEWS sat down with Frohnert to discuss causes for type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disorder, and how the coronavirus may play a role in triggering it.

Full Story

Artificial Pancreas Effectively Controls Type 1 Diabetes in Children Age 6 and Up

The artificial pancreas is an “all-in-one” diabetes management system that tracks blood glucose levels using a continuous glucose monitor and automatically delivers insulin when needed

Read the full journal article in the New England Journal of Medicine.

A clinical trial at the Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Center and three other pediatric diabetes centers in the United States has found that a new artificial pancreas system — which automatically monitors and regulates blood glucose levels — is safe and effective at managing blood glucose levels in children as young as age six with type 1 diabetes. The trial was funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), part of the National Institutes of Health. Results from the trial were published August 26 in the New England Journal of Medicine.

An Ultradian Notch in Beta-Cell Development

Published in the New England Journal of Medicine · July 2020

Read the full journal article in the New England Journal of Medicine.

A study of genetically manipulated mouse models has shown that ultradian cycles of expression of a particular protein influence specification of cell type in the pancreas, a finding that has implications for understanding beta-cell identity and function.

Dr. Gerard Gonzalez Discusses How the Coronavirus Has Expanded Concerns for T1D Patients

For diabetes patients, new health threats and cost concerns surface during coronavirus

Dr. Andrea Gerard Gonzalez discussed the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic with the Colorado Sun. Most notably, the increasing racial and income gaps in diabetes management and access to care. 

“It broke my heart because I came to one of the best places, and yet I discovered one of these huge disparities in outcomes and treatment of what Spanish-speaking patients were getting compared to everyone else."

Full Story

Study Finds Better Glucose Control in Young People with Diabetes When Using Continuous Glucose Monitoring Devices

Study Finds Better Glucose Control in Older Adults with T1D Using CGM

Read the Journal article on JAMA.

Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGM) are small devices that continually measure glucose levels under the skin, and transmit this information to a wireless device such as a receiver or cell phone. Two large multi-center studies recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) tested if these devices improved glycemic control or reduced incidence of life-threatening low glucose levels in two very unique populations: adolescents and older adults living with type 1 diabetes. Barbara Davis Center clinical and research staffs, including investigators Laurel Messer, PhD, Viral Shah, MD and Paul Wadwa, MD, were involved in the conduct of both landmark clinical trials.

Full Story