

JDRF, the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes (T1D) research, has announced that it has made progressive advances in 2018 on its path to a cure, funding new therapeutic developments to better treat this chronic autoimmune disease affecting 1.25 million Americans.
JDRF was founded in 1970 and is headquartered in New York City, USA. Its mission is to accelerate life-changing breakthroughs to cure, prevent and treat T1D and its complications. JDRF has invested more than $2.2 billion in research since its inception.
JDRF collaborates with academic institutions, policymakers, corporate and industry partners to develop and deliver a pipeline of innovative therapies to people living with T1D. JDRF’s staff and volunteers throughout the United States and its six international affiliates are dedicated to advocacy, community engagement and a vision of a world without T1D.
Some JDRF funding was allocated to cellular therapies and biobanking in 2018:
- In partnership with The Helmsley Charitable Trust, JDRF renewed $15 million in funding for the Network for Pancreatic Organ donors with Diabetes (nPOD) to continue transformative research into how and why T1D develops. nPOD is the world’s largest biobank of pancreatic tissue, supporting more than 300 investigators in 20 countries and processing 50,000 tissue samples for analysis. More than 170 peer-reviewed papers have been published by researchers utilizing nPOD samples.
- Eli Lilly and Sigilon Therapeutics announced a partnership to develop encapsulated cell therapies using Sigilon’s Afibromer™ materials, a technology that was launched with JDRF funding.
“This is one of the best examples in history of a foundation being proactive to solve a major medical problem and an illustration of leverage by providing funding that led to more funding and now the support of one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies,” – Robert Langer, Sc.D., co-founder of Sigilon Therapeutics.
“No organization in the world is more committed to type 1 diabetes research than JDRF,” … “To date, our organization has committed more than $2.25 billion to T1D research, a significant majority of which is being directed toward curing the disease. The heavy weighting toward cure research continued in 2018, as it will going forward. Additionally, our efforts in advocacy and investments have stimulated funding of at least $3 billion in research related to T1D from third parties, especially government funders. As we move toward curing T1D, we are accelerating the development of therapies that can significantly help people lead fuller, safer lives today and every day.” – Derek Rapp, CEO and president of JDRF.
Sources:
- https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/jdrf-drives-next-generation-type-1-diabetes-research-with-new-partnerships–breakthrough-science-300769653.html
- https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/jdrf