Beena Akolkar, Ph.D.

I am the program director for the Immunopathogenesis and genetics of Diabetes. My portfolio includes basic and clinical research on the genetics, immunopathogenesis, prevention, and treatment of type 1 diabetes (T1D) and genetics and genomics of type 2 diabetes (T2D).

I am the project scientist for the Environmental Determinants of Diabetes in the Young (TEDDY) study, an international consortium established with the goal of developing and carrying out studies to identify environmental triggers of T1D, such as infectious agents, dietary factors, and/or psychosocial factors, in genetically susceptible individuals.

I am the project scientist for the Accelerating Medicines Partnership Program for Common Metabolic Diseases (AMP-CMD), a collaborative partnership between the NIDDK, FNIH, pharmaceutical companies, and nonprofit organizations to develop new models for identifying and validating promising biological targets to serve as biomarkers and/or for drug discovery.

I also serve as a project officer for the NIDDK Central Repositories.  My responsibilities also include coordinating research activities on T1D across the NIH.

I am the project scientist for Rare and Atypical Diabetes Network (RADIANT), a consortium to define new forms of diabetes and study the unique mechanisms underlying these unique forms of diabetes.

I am the program director for the novel national Stakeholder Engagement Innovation Center for advancing equity in type 1 diabetes research (SEIC-T1D) to accelerate equitable engagement of diverse stakeholders in T1D research; particularly those from communities that experience diabetes-related health disparities and live within the healthcare and social systems that negatively impact community members’ and patients’ health.