At the helm of the NIDDK.

As of April 2007, Griffin P. Rodgers has taken over as director of the NIDDK, but had been the deputy director under Allen Spiegel since 2001 and the chief of Hematology since 1998. The JCI took the opportunity to ask this career investigator in the NIH about his goals and visions for the NIDDK. JCI: You moved quickly from chief of Hematology to deputy director of the NIDDK to director — what do you think contributed to this ascent? Rodgers: NIH is an incredibly supportive environment. I had terrific encouragement and great mentorship throughout my career and I owe a great deal to the people who have guided me along the way. As time passed, I became very interested in the challenges of managing a large research organization, and I pursued opportunities to augment my laboratory experiences along those lines. JCI: What areas of research do you see expanding while you serve as director? Are there areas in which you want to invite grants and proposals? Rodgers: We are extremely interested in translational research. Other areas of interest would focus on interactions between genetic variations and the environment, encompassing different types of environmental triggers of, or contributors to, disease, as well as research related to an individual’s response to potential disease treatments. Additional examples of cross-cutting research interest are metabolomics, proteomics, and research on the gut microbiome. JCI: Given the increasing attention on obesity, do you have any comment on what the NIDDK will do to combat the “epidemic”? Do you plan any increased funding or outreach programs or education incentives? Rodgers: It is clearly a critical — and very complex — public health problem. Research areas that we fund include basic, clinical, and translational research toward prevention and treatment of obesity, as well as studies addressing their link to many other serious diseases and disorders within our institute’s mission, such as type 2 diabetes, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, and urinary incontinence. The NIDDK’s support of basic, clinical, and translational research, as well of as education and outreach efforts, will be important contributors to multidimensional, national efforts to combat obesity. We support scientists who are elucidating the molecular regulation of appetite, energy expenditure, and energy storage, because this type of basic research opens new avenues for treatment approaches that could be pursued by academic and other researchers. We also support scientists who are studying behavioral and environmental factors that contribute to excess weight gain. With respect to education and outreach programs, one example is a multicultural program we developed to disseminate the results of the lifestyle intervention of our Diabetes Prevention Program clinical trial. This trial demonstrated that moderate weight loss, from a more healthful diet and moderate exercise, can dramatically