Four new professorships to drive forward diabetes research in Bern

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The Diabetes Center Berne develops new medical devices. © Diabetes Center Berne.
The Diabetes Center Berne develops new medical devices. © Diabetes Center Berne.

The University of Bern and the Diabetes Center Berne (DCB) are together creating four professorships in the field of diabetes technology research and development. This will boost the international profile of diabetes research in Bern and strengthen its role as a center of medicine in the long term.

The four professorships are to be financed with 417,000 Swiss francs per annum each over a period of 12 years. A quarter of this funding is being covered by the University of Bern and three quarters by the DCB. Holders of the new tenure-track assistant professorships will work in areas of diabetes technology and clinical research, and will draw on findings from their research in clinical use and teaching.

For the Diabetes Center Berne, the new professorships are an important milestone in achieving the foundation's goal of tackling challenges in the field of diabetes technology and improving patient outcomes. Chairman of the foundation board Dr. h.c. Willy Michel is delighted with the new posts. "We are expecting to obtain many new insights into improving treatment and offering real added value for people living with diabetes."

Top female researchers wanted

By creating the four professorships, the University of Bern is sending out a strong signal about the importance of medicine in the Capital region of Switzerland. "These professorships make the University of Bern an important international player in diabetes research," says Rector Christian Leumann. The type of post - tenure-track assistant professorships - is also specifically intended to appeal to top young female researchers, both nationally and internationally.

In academic terms, the holders of the professorships will be attached to the University Department of Diabetes, Endocrinology, Nutritional Medicine & Metabolism (UDEM) at Inselspital, University Hospital Bern. UDEM’s Director Prof. Christoph Stettler is confident that "these professorships will allow us to continue to advance research into diabetes technology and take a targeted approach to applying findings in clinical use."

About the Diabetes Center Berne

The Diabetes Center Berne (DCB) is a platform of the Swiss Institute for Translational and Entrepreneurial Medicine (sitem-insel), and its focus is on unmet needs in the field of diabetes mellitus. Set up on the initiative of Dr. h.c. Willy Michel, the foundation (non-profit organization) seeks to research and develop alternative and innovative solutions and treatments for diabetes.

In addition to translational academic research, the Center provides infrastructure and capital for start-ups and spin-offs and supports research projects and activities relating to diabetes. An important DCB concern and objective is translation, i.e. effective transfer from research to the hospital and from the hospital to the product. The DCB's position is thus between university research and industrial development, and the Center supports activities and projects in translation from the research laboratory and clinical use to proof of concept and market approval.