Highest EASD Award for Anette-Gabriele Ziegler
This year's Claude Bernard Prize goes to Anette-Gabriele Ziegler. The director of the Institute for Diabetes Research at Helmholtz Munich, professor at the Technical University of Munich and DZD scientist is being recognized for her outstanding innovative scientific achievements in the field of type 1 diabetes.
With her research, Ziegler has made a significant contribution to making early stages of type 1 diabetes visible, thus opening up new possibilities for prevention, early detection and early treatment. Her work demonstrates that the disease begins years before the onset of clinical symptoms and can be detected early using specific autoantibodies. With this, she has laid the foundation for population-wide screening programs and prevention studies that now set international standards.
For many years, she has pursued the goal of not only detecting type 1 diabetes early, but also treating it early and preventing it in the long term. Through the close integration of research into disease mechanisms, clinical research and population-based studies, she has made a crucial contribution to developing new prevention strategies and translating them into clinical application.
Camillo Golgi Prize Awarded to Andreas Birkenfeld
The EASD awards the Camillo Golgi Prize to Andreas Birkenfeld for his outstanding contributions to the understanding, prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes and its complications. Birkenfeld is Director of the DZD partner Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) of Helmholtz Munich at the University of Tübingen, a member of the DZD Board, and Medical Director of the Department of Medicine IV at the University Hospital of Tübingen.
His work on the remission of prediabetes is particularly groundbreaking. It shows that returning to normal glucose regulation not only improves metabolic health but can also reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes and subsequent cardiovascular complications. Furthermore, Birkenfeld contributed to the development of new therapeutic approaches, including research on the longevity gene INDY as a potential target for the treatment of diabetes, fatty liver disease and obesity.
EFSD Rising Star Fellowship for Aaron Novikoff
With the EFSD Rising Star Fellowship Award, the European Foundation for the Study of Diabetes (EFSD) supports outstanding young scientists on their path to scientific independence. This year's award winners include Aaron Novikoff from Helmholtz Munich and the DZD.
His research project “Elucidating New Strategies for Precision Incretin Pharmacology” is being honored with an award. The goal is to develop new approaches for the treatment of diabetes and obesity. Novikoff is investigating how the effect of incretin-based drugs can be specifically optimized through a better understanding of the underlying receptor mechanisms.
His research approach combines modern molecular methods with innovative peptide design strategies and could help make future therapies more effective and better tolerated.
Scientific Excellence Across All Career Levels
"These awards underline the international visibility and scientific excellence of the German Center for Diabetes Research. They recognize outstanding lifetime achievements and groundbreaking scientific work as well as innovative research from the next generation,” says Prof. Martin Hrabě de Angelis, Scientific Managing Director and Spokesperson of the Helmholtz Munich Management Board (acting), as well as Member of the Executive Board and Spokesperson of the German Center for Diabetes Research.
The award-winning researchers represent the central goal of the DZD: to develop new ways to prevent, detect and treat diabetes early, and to rapidly translate scientific findings into medical care.
About the Claude Bernard Prize
The Claude Bernard Prize is the highest award of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD). It recognizes scientists for innovative scientific leadership and outstanding achievements in diabetes research. The award includes prize money donated by Sanofi.
About the Camillo Golgi Prize
The Camillo Golgi Prize is awarded annually for outstanding contributions to research into the causes, prevention and treatment of diabetes complications and comorbidities. The prize includes prize money donated by Novo Nordisk.
About the EFSD Rising Star Fellowship
The EFSD Rising Star Fellowship supports excellent early-career researchers in developing independent research programs. The funding is awarded by the European Foundation for the Study of Diabetes (EFSD) and supported by Novo Nordisk. The aim is to promote innovative research projects that provide new impetus for the prevention and treatment of diabetes.
