UAB Diabetes Research Day will take place Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2026, at the new Heersink Conference Center at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The event will showcase the latest advances in diabetes and metabolic disease research through keynote presentations, oral presentations, and a research poster session. We look forward to welcoming faculty, trainees, staff, and students from across UAB schools and departments to our Diabetes Research Day! Please see the full agenda below.
Keynote Speakers
Ralph Anthony DeFronzo, M.D.
Ralph A. DeFronzo, M.D., is Professor of Medicine and Chief of the Diabetes Division at the University of Texas Health Science Center and the Deputy Director of the Texas Diabetes Institute, San Antonio, Texas.
Keynote Address: 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM
“Insulin Resistance in T2DM: Whole Body, Organ, Cellular, and Molecular Pathogenesis”
Matthew Might, Ph.D.
Matt Might, Ph.D., is Director of the Hugh Kaul Precision Medicine Institute at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he holds the Hugh Kaul Endowed Chair in Precision Medicine and is a Professor of Internal Medicine and Computer Science. He is a Senior Scientist in the UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center.
Keynote Address: 9:45 AM – 10:45 AM
“Precision Diabetes in the Age of AI: What Rare Disease Taught Us, and What Comes Next”
Schedule
9:00 AM – 9:30 AM
Registration and Coffee
9:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Session I
Chair: Jeonga Kim, Ph.D.
9:30 AM – 9:45 AM
Welcome
Anath Shalev, M.D., Professor of Medicine, Director, UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center
9:45 AM – 10:45 AM
Keynote Address
Precision Diabetes in the Age of AI: What Rare Disease Taught Us, and What Comes Next
Matt Might, Ph.D.
10:45AM – 11:00 AM
DiaClue: A Web App for Diabetes Subtype Classification
Brian Lu, Ph.D., Ava Michl (Mentor: Anath Shalev, M.D.)
11:00 AM – 11:15 AM
miR-221/222-mediated Regulation of Pancreatic β-cell Compensation During Pregnancy
Shilpa Thakur, Ph.D. (Mentor: Weidong Wang, Ph.D.)
11:15 AM – 11:30 AM
Energy State-dependent Regulation of Glucagon-like Peptide 1-releasing Neurons in the Nucleus of the Solitary Tract
Melissa Rodriguez (Mentor: Andrew Hardaway, Ph.D.)
11:45 – 12:00 PM
Soluble Epoxide Hydrolase as a Macrophage Target in Type 1 Diabetes
Jonathan Folmar (Mentor: Sasanka Ramanadham, Ph.D.)
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM
Lunch
12:00 – 1:30 PM
Poster Session
1:30 PM – 4:15 PM
Session II
Chair: Ananda Basu, M.D.
1:30 PM – 2:30 PM
Keynote Address
Insulin Resistance in T2DM: Whole Body, Organ, Cellular, and Molecular Pathogenesis
Ralph A. DeFronzo, M.D.
2:30 PM – 2:45 PM
Coffee Break
2:45 PM – 3:00 PM
The Hepatic Glucagon Receptor’s Mediation of Chronic Exercise Response
Justin Bridges (Mentor: Kirk Habegger, Ph.D.)
3:00 PM – 3:15 PM
Cerebral Glucose Uptake and Acute Ketone Responses in Older Adults with Prediabetes
S. Katherine Sweatt, Ph.D. (Mentor: Barbara Gower, Ph.D.)
3:15 PM – 3:30 PM
Brain-Angiogenesis Inhibitor-3 Regulates Brown Adipose Tissue Thermogenesis and Systemic Metabolic Homeostasis
Hari Girish Kumar (Mentor: Sushant Bhatnagar, Ph.D.)
3:30 PM – 3:45 PM
O-GlcNAc-MCT4-Lactate Axis Promotes Cardiomyocyte-Macrophage Crosstalk in Diabetic Heart Failure
Mahima Reddy (Mentor: Adam Wende, Ph.D.)
3:45 PM - 4:00 PM
RXRα Maintains Retinal Vascular Integrity and Modulates Inflammation in Diabetic Retinopathy
Fadeela Sheini (Mentor: Maria Grant, M.D.)
4:00 PM – 4:15 PM
Best Diabetes Abstract Award Presentation / Adjourn
Awards presented by Fernando Ovalle, M.D.
Registration
Registration is free, but required for this event. Lunch is included.
Registration deadline: Closed Nov. 7
Abstract Submissions
Trainees and faculty members are invited to submit abstracts to be considered for oral or poster presentations.
Abstract deadline: Closed Sept. 30
Awards
Awards will be given for Best Diabetes Research Abstract.
Location
Marnix E. Heersink Conference Center, Room 102 & Lobby
70119th Street, Birmingham, AL 35233
Contact
For questions about registration or abstract submissions, email diabetescomms@uabmc.edu.