Muscle mitochondria and type 2 diabetes
Official title: Role and Regulation of Skeletal Muscle Mitochondrial Dynamics in Type 2 Diabetes
Funded at Lsu Pennington Biomedical Research Ctr · NIH-11392882 · Data updated 2026-11-12
We are testing whether fixing how mitochondria move and balance inside muscle cells can help people with type 2 diabetes control their blood sugar.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Lsu Pennington Biomedical Research Ctr NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Baton Rouge, United States) |
| Project start | September 30, 2015 |
| Project end | April 30, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $749,999 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DK108089-07 |
| Project ID | NIH-11392882 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults with type 2 diabetes, especially those with insulin resistance or difficulty controlling blood sugar, are the main candidates for participation.
✕Less likely to help
People without type 2 diabetes or those with type 1 diabetes are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this project.
What this research studies
If you join, doctors will take muscle biopsies and blood samples to look at mitochondrial shape, movement, and specific proteins like RHOT1. You may undergo a hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp with tracers to measure how your body handles glucose and fats. In some participants with hard-to-control diabetes, physicians may give insulin infusions to see whether normalizing blood sugar changes mitochondrial structure. The team combines these human tests with molecular measures of mitochondrial calcium handling and bioenergetics to link cell changes to whole-body metabolism.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to new ways to restore healthy mitochondrial behavior in muscle and improve glucose control for people with type 2 diabetes.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work has tied DRP1-driven mitochondrial fission to insulin resistance, so this builds on established findings while investigating the newer RHOT1-related mechanisms.
Where this research is happening
-
Lsu Pennington Biomedical Research Ctr
Baton Rouge, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kirwan, John P. — Lsu Pennington Biomedical Research Ctr
- Study coordinator: Kirwan, John P.
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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.