Diabetes work takes the prize

Rocky Mountain News

Published November 18, 2006 at midnight

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For his quarter-century of work against childhood diabetes, work that could result in a vaccine that will transform millions of lives, a Colorado researcher was awarded a prestigious international prize today.

George Eisenbarth, executive director of the Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes in Denver, was awarded the Pasteur-Weizmann/Servier International Prize in Biomedical Research in Paris.

Eisenbach, also a professor of pediatrics and immunology at the University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center, was a pioneer in understanding that childhood diabetes - also called Type 1 diabetes - is an autoimmune disease.

Eisenbach's research, along with "junior" winner Lucienne Chatenoud, of Paris, offers hope for the prevention and improved treatment of diabetes, said Professor Pierre Lefèbvre, president of the International Federation of Diabetes and member of the independent prize selection jury.

Eisenbach receives 100,000 euros, Chatenoud 50,000 euros.

The vaccine on the horizon, made possible by Eisenbach's and Chatenoud's work, would be administered to people at high risk for contracting Type 1 diabetes.

"Receiving this award is a great honor to me and all my research collaborators over the past years," Eisenbarth said.

"Type I diabetes is a huge global health problem, and more research in this area is crucial."

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