The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) has awarded an $8.6 million RC2 grant to an ISCRM team led by Vincenzo Cirulli, with collaborators Hannele Ruohola-Baker, Laura Crisa, Shiri Levy, Julie Mathieu, and Karol Bomsztyk. The project aims to address the shortage of donor tissue for diabetes cell therapies by generating fully functional pancreatic islets from multiple stem cell lines. To improve the efficiency and consistency of islet production, the team will use AI-designed mini-proteins called EpiBinders, developed through collaborations between the Ruohola-Baker and David Baker labs at ISCRM and the UW Institute of Protein Design. Additional expertise comes from Mary Regier and Sina Gharib.
Dr. Cirulli Secures Transformative $8.6M NIH RC2 Grant, with Collaborators Drs. Crisa, Bomsztyk, Ruohola-Baker, Levy, and Mathieu
