Endocrinology & Metabolism Newsletter

In this quarterly issue of the Yale Section of Endocrinology and Metabolism, we continue a series highlighting our clinical programs and we look back at some signature accomplishments from the past year.

The Endocrine Neoplasia Program focuses primarily on the care of patients with benign and malignant tumors of the pituitary, thyroid, and adrenal glands. This program is multi-disciplinary and collaborative—we work closely with our colleagues in endocrine surgery, ENT, neurosurgery, pathology, and diagnostic imaging. It is a growing part of our overall practice with six endocrinologists and a new Director, Sachin Majumdar, MD. In addition, we hope to recruit a new faculty member(s) with expertise in clinical research in endocrine neoplasia. Read more about the clinic below.

As I reflect on the year gone by, we at Yale Endocrinology have much to be proud of. I wish I could list all of the faculty’s accomplishments, but I am limited by space. What follows are a but a few highlights.

• In March, Gerald Shulman, MD, PhD, published his lab’s findings on how metformin works to suppress gluconeogenesis through inhibiting Complex IV activity, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
  
• Shulman was awarded the 2021 Manpei Suzuki International Prize for Diabetes Research, also in March. The award recognizes Shulman’s groundbreaking research in the understanding of physiologic regulation of liver and muscle carbohydrate and fat metabolism and its dysregulation in type 2 diabetes.
• In April, Elizabeth Jonas, MD, was elected into the Association of American Physicians during the organization’s annual meeting.
• The Yale Bone Center celebrated its 35th anniversary in April. Karl Insogna, MD, FACP, led the team through advances in diseases such as such as osteoporosis, hyperparathyroidism, and Paget’s disease of bone, along with genetic disorders of skeletal structure and mineral content.
• In June, Ania Jastreboff, MD, PhD, presented findings from the SURMOUNT-1 study at the American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions. SURMOUNT-1 was a Phase 3 trial investigating the efficacy and safety of tirzepatide, and the results were published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
• In November, the FDA approved teplizumab, the first drug with the ability to change the course of type 1 diabetes, or any autoimmune disease. Yale Endocrinology played a crucial role in the drug’s trials, most of which were led by Kevan Herold, MD. We are hard at work to develop a new initiative in diabetes risk assessment and immune therapy to prevent and treat type 1 diabetes.

At Yale, we have always been at the forefront of scientific discoveries and patient care in endocrinology and diabetes, and our faculty and staff are hard at work to push the boundaries of our field even further forward. I look forward to sharing more exciting news in upcoming newsletters.

John Wysolmerski, MD
Professor of Medicine (Endocrinology)
Section Chief, Endocrinology & Metabolism
Department of Internal Medicine, Yale School of Medicine
john.wysolmerski@yale.edu