Domenico Accili, MD

The Accili laboratory is focused on advancing research that shows promise to transform diabetes care from the current disease management approach to permanent disease reversal or modification. To this end, the laboratory investigates basic mechanisms of disease using different experimental approaches that include genetics, cellular, and integrated physiological studies. Key discoveries include: the reversible nature of pancreatic insulin-producing cell dysfunction, the mechanism of glucose production by the liver, and the ability of endocrine cells of the gastrointestinal tract to be transformed into insulin-producing, glucose-sensitive cells that can take over the function of missing pancreatic beta cells in type 1 diabetes. All these discoveries are at different stages of translation into treatments for diabetes.   

Key Publications

  • Son et al. BACH2 inhibition reverses β cell failure in type 2 diabetes models J Clin Invest (2021) 131(24):e153876
  • Langlet et al. Selective Inhibition of FOXO1 Activator/Repressor Balance Modulates Hepatic Glucose Handling Cell (2017) 171(4):824-835.e18
  • Talchai et al. Pancreatic β cell dedifferentiation as a mechanism of diabetic β cell failure Cell (2012) 150(6):1223-34
  • Talchai et al. Generation of functional insulin-producing cells in the gut by Foxo1 ablation Nat Genet (2012) 44(4):406-12