Sugar-related damage in bone and fracture risk in type 2 diabetes
Official title: Effects of Advanced Glycation Endproducts on Type 2 Diabetic and Fragility Fractures
Funded at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute · NIH-11320887 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how sugar-related molecules called advanced glycation end products (AGEs) in bone may make fractures more likely in people with type 2 diabetes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Troy, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2022 |
| Project end | April 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $561,837 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AG075654-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11320887 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with type 2 diabetes—particularly older adults worried about bone fractures—would be the most relevant candidates.
✕Less likely to help
People without diabetes or those whose fractures are caused by major high‑impact trauma are unlikely to get direct benefit from this work.
What this research studies
You would be asked to help researchers compare bone from people with and without type 2 diabetes to look for chemical changes linked to fractures. The team measures known AGEs like pentosidine and a non‑fluorescent AGE called CML in human bone samples and correlates those levels with bone toughness and mineral content. They also run laboratory tests to see how CML changes the way mineral crystals form and bind to collagen in bone. By comparing diabetic and age‑matched non‑diabetic bones, they aim to find markers that better explain why fractures happen in diabetes.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to better tests that identify people with type 2 diabetes who are at higher risk for fragile fractures and inform prevention or treatment strategies.
How similar studies have gone: Prior studies linked the AGE pentosidine to bone fragility with mixed results, while measuring CML in bone is a more recent and promising approach that is less tested.
Where this research is happening
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Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Troy, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Vashishth, Deepak — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
- Study coordinator: Vashishth, Deepak
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.