How new-onset type 1 diabetes affects the developing brain in young children
Official title: Cognitive, structural and functional impact of new onset type 1 diabetes on the brain of young children: Understanding risks and protective factors
Funded at Nemours Children's Clinic · NIH-11168763 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project follows children newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes to track brain development, thinking skills, and blood sugar patterns over time.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Nemours Children's Clinic NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Jacksonville, United States) |
| Project start | August 15, 2024 |
| Project end | June 30, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $527,712 |
| NIH project number | 5U01DK140734-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11168763 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are children aged 4–10 years with a new diagnosis of type 1 diabetes (enrolled within about 4–6 weeks of diagnosis), including those who presented with or without diabetic ketoacidosis, and age-matched non-diabetic controls like siblings or classmates.
✕Less likely to help
Children outside the 4–10 year age range, those with long-standing diabetes diagnosed long before enrollment, or children without type 1 diabetes are unlikely to be eligible or to receive direct benefit from this project.
What this research studies
If your child is newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes between ages 4 and 10, this study would ask about their thinking, mood, and medical history and schedule several visits over the coming years. Children will have brain MRI scans, standardized tests of memory and executive skills, and wear continuous glucose monitors to record blood sugar patterns. Researchers will compare results from children with diabetes (including those who had diabetic ketoacidosis at diagnosis) to age-matched non-diabetic peers and look at links between blood sugar control, use of advanced insulin delivery, and brain outcomes. The study follows a large group of children over time to see which factors raise risk or offer protection for brain development.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the study could identify blood sugar patterns and treatment approaches that protect brain development and inform earlier, targeted care for young children with type 1 diabetes.
How similar studies have gone: Earlier smaller and longitudinal studies have found measurable differences in brain structure and cognitive scores linked to higher blood sugar in children, but this larger, early-onset cohort focusing on new diagnoses and modern insulin delivery is relatively novel.
Where this research is happening
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Nemours Children's Clinic
Jacksonville, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Mauras, Nelly — Nemours Children's Clinic
- Study coordinator: Mauras, Nelly
Related research
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.