Mentoring Underrepresented Researchers in Diabetes and Pregnancy Investigation

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ABSTRACT Hyperglycemia is a common metabolic problem with a profound impact on pregnancy outcomes. Even modest elevations in blood glucose during gestation are associated with a multitude of pregnancy complications, including fetal growth abnormalities, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, preterm birth, and neonatal morbidity. Manifestation of metabolic disease in pregnancy foreshadows future diabetes and cardiovascular risk in both affected individuals and their children. Over the past two decades, there have been remarkable advances in understanding of diabetes pathophysiology, application of diabetes technology, and novel diabetes therapeutics. Yet, many these innovations have not reached the obstetric population, in part because of the by-default exclusion of pregnant and lactating individuals from clinical research studies. To address this problem, we need to train a new generation of diabetes researchers that has the expertise to rigorously conduct studies in pregnancy. This new generation of investigators should reflect the diversity of the people affected by hyperglycemia, who are disproportionately from minoritized and marginalized groups. The Principal Investigator (PI) has a longstanding commitment to mentoring future physicians and scientists, with a special emphasis on trainees that are from backgrounds underrepresented in biomedical research. The goal of this proposal is to support the PI’s high-quality mentorship of graduate students and postdoctoral fellows from underrepresented backgrounds in diabetes and pregnancy investigation. The PI’s interdisciplinary NIH-funded research program applies advances in physiologic and genetic profiling, as well as diabetes technologies, to improve the understanding of glycemia in pregnancy and inform new approaches to the care of pregnant and lactating individuals with diabetes. The PI has had continuous NIDDK funding since joining the faculty of Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Her funded research projects and other available datasets provide a rich training-ground for mentee projects in the investigation of diabetes, metabolic disease, and other related disorders in pregnancy. During the grant period the PI will RECRUIT (Aim 1), TRAIN (Aim 2), SUPPORT (Aim 3), and SPONSOR (Aim 4) at least 8 trainees at the graduate student or postdoctoral fellow level from underrepresented backgrounds. With access to exceptional institutional resources and the PI’s scientific program, mentees will succeed in building independent research careers and deliver biomedical advances in diabetes to pregnant and lactating individuals.