UTRGV recruits 22-person research team to establish South Texas Diabetes & Obesity Institute
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and its medical school are poised to become an internationally recognized epicenter for the research and treatment of diabetes and obesity. UTRGV leaders announced Monday morning that renowned genetics and infectious diseases expert Sarah Williams-Blangero, Ph.D., has been appointed director of the South Texas Diabetes & Obesity Institute, a new research, clinical and education program being established at UTRGV. Williams-Blangero, former chair of the Department of Genetics at the Texas Biomedical Research Institute in San Antonio, is bringing 21 additional researchers and support staff with her to the Rio Grande Valley. "With the recruitment of Dr. Williams-Blangero and her team, UTRGV will achieve instantaneous national and international recognition for our health sciences research capabilities," said Francisco Fernandez, M.D., dean of the UTRGV School of Medicine. "These researchers have worked with over 15,000 study volunteers from San Antonio to Nepal, and their work spans the spectrum of medicine from diabetes and obesity to heart disease, osteoporosis, psychiatric disease, cancer and infectious diseases."The South Texas Diabetes & Obesity Institute is being established to advance research of diabetes and obesity, develop better treatments and ultimately improve the health of residents in South Texas and beyond. "As UTRGV and the school of medicine come to fruition, we are focusing on connecting science and research with the South Texas community," UTRGV President Guy Bailey, Ph.D., said. "We are working to create the best possible outcomes for our patients through research, clinical care and education." Source: https://www.utsystem.edu/news/2014/10/13/utrgv-recruits-22-person-research-team-establish-south-texas-diabetes-obesity-institute