JDRF is a leader in setting the agenda for diabetes research worldwide, and is the largest charitable funder and advocate of Type 1 research. The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research. Type 1 diabetes is a disease which strikes children and adults suddenly and requires multiple injections of insulin daily or a continuous infusion of insulin through a pump. Insulin, however, is not a cure for diabetes, nor does it prevent its eventual and devastating complications which may include kidney failure, blindness, heart disease, stroke, and amputation. Since its founding in 1970 by parents of children with Type 1 diabetes, JDRF has awarded more than $1.4 billion to diabetes research, including more than $100 million last year.
Press Releases
JDRF Recognizes Nepom with Top Scientific Excellence Award
Gerald Nepom, MD, PhD, director of Benaroya Research Institute at Virginia Mason (BRI) and director of the Immune Tolerance Network, was named a recipient of the David Rumbough Award for Scientific Excellence by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) at its Annual Conference in Washington, D.C. Established almost 40 years ago by actress Dina Merrill in honor of her late son, David, the Rumbough Award is presented annually in recognition of outstanding achievement in diabetes research and service to JDRF.
"The scientists who received these awards represent the best and the brightest, and are the embodiment of the hope and commitment each and every one of us has that treatments will soon be a reality, and that a cure is inevitable," said Dr. Richard Insel, executive vice president of research at JDRF.
Founding BRI's immunology and diabetes research programs, Dr. Nepom is an internationally renowned immunologist and leader in autoimmune disease research. His leadership has made BRI the foremost Type 1 diabetes translational research and clinical trials center in the Pacific Northwest. His contributions to the diabetes field also include the identification and characterization of immune system genes associated with Type 1 diabetes and the use of "tetramer" biomarker technology.
Dr. Nepom previously served as a leader in several organizations, including the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Autoimmunity Prevention Centers and the JDRF Autoimmunity Centers of Excellence. He is immediate past president of FOCIS, the Federation of Clinical Immunology Societies, a worldwide organization dedicated to interdisciplinary research and education in translational immunology.
About Benaroya Research Institute
Benaroya Research Institute (BRI) is a world leader in human immune system research. BRI works to advance the science that will predict, prevent, reverse and cure immune system diseases like allergies, asthma, cancer, COVID-19 and autoimmune diseases. BRI accelerates discovery through laboratory breakthroughs in immunology that are then translated to clinical therapies. We believe that a breakthrough in one immune system disease can lead to progress against them all, and work tirelessly toward our vision of a healthy immune system for everyone. BRI is a world-renowned independent nonprofit research institute affiliated with Virginia Mason Franciscan Health and based in Seattle.
To learn more, visit benaroyaresearch.org and connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, LinkedIn, X and YouTube.
