WELCOME to the UMASS DERC

Breakthrough discoveries in diabetes research…..

This is the goal of the University of Massachusetts Medical School Diabetes and Endocrinology Research Center (DERC).  The UMass DERC serves 94 principle investigators at the Medical School, both basic and physician scientists, in striving for that goal.  They are dedicated to understanding the autoimmunity and beta cell biology of Type 1 Diabetes, the molecular causes of metabolic disease in obesity and Type 2 Diabetes and the potential routes by which therapies may be developed.

Our DERC, funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, supports:

• Core Facilities that provide state-of-the-art technologies to researchers
• Pilot and Feasibility Grants to test exciting new ideas
• An Enrichment Program of retreats/seminars presented by world research leaders
• Mentoring of outstanding researchers new to the field of diabetes

UMass DERC members form an exciting scientific environment of high intensity at the Medical School, focusing the approaches of many disciplines and techniques to the key basic and translational questions in diabetes research. They attract a large cadre of bright and energetic students and fellows from around the world, who in turn greatly enrich our Center. 

Michael P. Czech, Director of the UMass DERC
Professor and Chair of Molecular Medicine