Home - DREAM - Diabetes Research Envisioned & Accomplished in Manitoba

DREAM Land Acknowledgement

We are a team of researchers from diverse backgrounds committed to addressing diabetes and its complications. We live and work on Treaty 1 Territory; the ancestral lands of the Anishinaabeg, Anishininewuk, Dakota Oyate, Denesuline and Nehethowuk (Ininew) Nations and the Homeland of the Red River Métis, only 2 km away from a previous residential school.

We recognize the ongoing impacts of colonization on the health of Indigenous children and families (TRC#18), and are committed to working in partnership with community to optimize health outcomes (TRC#19), recognize the value of Indigenous healing practices (TRC#22) and support the training and hiring of Indigenous Peoples in research and healthcare settings (TRC#23).

What We Do

We are a multidisciplinary team that works in collaboration with communities in order to do research aimed at improving the health of children with diabetes.

We have three main areas of research: type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, and diabetes in pregnancy. Each of these areas contribute to our objective of making clinically relevant discoveries that will help to improve diagnosis, prevention and management of complications related to obesity and diabetes.

Clinical Research

Our team leads clinical studies aimed at understanding the most important risk factors for youth onset diabetes and complications. This knowledge will inform new care models and treatments.

Diabetes in Pregnancy

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a type of diabetes that occurs during the second or third trimester of pregnancy, to women who did not have diabetes prior to being pregnant. Women with GDM cannot produce enough insulin to handle the effects of a growing baby and changing hormone levels.

Early Life Origins of Diabetes

Environmental exposure in early life have long-term impacts on the risk for diabetes development.

Epigenetics

Environment exposures can impact the way genes work. Our team is investigating epigenetics to understand the mechanism and timing of biological embedding of exposures on long-term health.

Interventions

We collaborate to translate our research findings into novel interventions that improve the wellness of children and their families affected by diabetes. We invite you to learn more about our ongoing projects.

Metabolism

The metabolic factors that contribute to type 2 diabetes development in youth may be different from those in adults. Through our interdisciplinary research we investigate how a wide range of metabolites and metabolic processes in a variety of organ systems.

Pancreas Biology

Clusters of cells within the pancreas produce hormones such as insulin that control the levels of sugars in the bloodstream. Dysfunction in these cells leads to diabetes.

Core Priorities

We are a translational research team focused on childhood onset diabetes research. Our team as focused on type 2 diabetes for the last 10 years, and has more recently expanded to include type 1 diabetes, and diabetes in pregnancy. Core priorities include:

Reconciliation
Anti-racism
Patient and Community Engagement
Understanding the biology of diabetes in youth
Developing new prevention and treatment strategies

About Us

10+

Discoveries that inform prevention and treatment strategies for children & families living with diabetes

1

DREAM Steering Circle

3

Patient Advisory Groups

3

Clinical Teams

7

Core Basic Science Labs

Diabetes affects approximately 1 in 333 children and youth below the age of 20; First Nation children are 20 X higher risk than all other Canadian children.

Insulin is a hormone that controls the amount of sugar in your bloodstream.

When your body can't produce enough insulin or your body is unable to use the insulin it produces, high blood sugar levels result that are characteristic of diabetes.

If blood sugars remain too high they can lead to damage of blood vessels and organs in your body that can lead to severe complications such as blindness or kidney failure.

Risk factors are broad, and are different for children affected by type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Understanding the root causes is necessary to both prevent and treat this disease.