UK Islet Transplant Programme Scotland and UK Islet Transplant Consortium.
Edinburgh Metabolism
Shareen Forbes, MBChB, PhD
Professor of Diabetic Medicine
Institute for Neuroscience and Cardiovascular Research
Queen’s Medical Research Institute
Edinburgh BioQuarter, EH16 4TJ
Profile
Shareen Forbes is Professor of Diabetic Medicine at the University of Edinburgh, Lead Physician of the Islet Transplant Programme in Scotland since its inception in 2009 and Visiting Professor of the Islet Transplant Programme, Edmonton, Canada. She graduated in Medicine from the University of Edinburgh and did specialist training in diabetes, endocrinology and general medicine at Imperial College, London where she was awarded Novo Nordisk UK Research Foundation fellowship to undertake her PhD studies. Following her PhD award in 2005 she was awarded the Diabetes UK Clinical Intermediate Fellowship to further study in vivo metabolism in diabetes which she undertook first at Imperial College London and later at the University of Edinburgh.
Current Roles
- 2026 ; ADA Organising Committee 2027
- 2026 ; IPITA Organising Committee 2027
- 2024 ; International Pancreas and Islet Transplant Association – Education Committee
- 2024; Danish Diabetes and Endocrinology Academy Board Member on Strategic Partnerships
- 2024 ; Breakthrough T1D International Consortium Group Member
- 2022 ; Centre for PRecision medicine Cell TherApy for Liver (PRaCTicAL) Steering Group Member
- 2021 ; Breakthrough T1D Scientific Advisory Board Member
- 2019 ; Scottish Diabetes Technology Group Member
- 2018 ; Novo Nordisk UK Foundation Trustee Member; Chair in May 2024
- 2011 ; Clinical Transplant Trials Committee, NHS Lothian.
- 2011 ; Tutor MSc courses at Universities of Edinburgh and Glasgow
- 2010 ; Principal Investigator Islet Transplant Programme, Scotland / UK Islet Transplant Consortium
Previous Roles
- 2017 - 2023; Diabetes UK, Clinical Studies Group 2, Causes and Prevention of Type 1 diabetes Member
- 2019 – 2023; Lead Metabolic and Obesity Networks, Society for Endocrinology
- 2019 – 2023; Society for Endocrinology, Council of Health Care Professionals
- 2017 – 2018; American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions Transplantation Committee
- 2016 – 2019; British Endocrine Societies, Scientific Advisory Board Member
- 2016 - 2018; Innovators in Diabetes Research Programme
- 2014 – 2018; Diabetes UK Scottish Advisory Council of Health Care Professionals Member
- 2009 - 2016; Translational Medicine at the University of Edinburgh, Studies – Course Organiser, Director of Medical Statistics Module
- 2008 - 2013; Principal Investigator Tommy’s Research Programme
Research area
Application of cell and gene therapies to Type 1 diabetes to improve glycaemic control.
Research Overview
My laboratory is interested in the mechanisms underlying Type 1 diabetes, with a focus on beta cell dysfunction and strategies addressing beta cell preservation, beta cell regeneration, and beta cell restoration/islet transplantation. By combining basic, translational, and clinical research, my overarching goal is to investigate immunotherapies that preserve beta cell function and develop new cell- and gene-based therapies that can improve the success of transplantation in people living with Type 1 diabetes.
Basic and Translational Research
Areas of investigation:
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Established stem cell-derived islet transplantation in rodent models with diabetes to investigate the mechanisms limiting transplant success.
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Developing innovative co-therapies to reduce islet loss and enhance in vivo engraftment of islets.
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Working with chemists to develop specialised microparticles to improve long-term islet function in vivo.
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Collaborating with biophysicists to create novel non-labelled methodologies for assessing islet viability.
Clinical Research
Key activities include:
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Analysing factors influencing islet transplant outcomes, such as listing patients for second transplants and HLA status of the donor and recipient.
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Developed and validated the BETA-2 score, a widely adopted composite measure of islet transplant function, in collaboration with Professor Peter Senior and Professor James Shapiro.
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Restoration of glucagon response to hypoglycaemia in people with Type 1 diabetes using novel mechanisms.
Transplanted mouse islet in the liver, with beta cells producing insulin. Dying (apoptotic) beta cells can be seen in the islet within 24 hours.
Transplanted mouse islet in the portal vein of the liver, with beta cells producing insulin. Macrophages can be seen in the surrounding liver tissue.
Alternatively activated macrophages (AAMs) delivered to mouse islets phagocytosing dying (apoptotic) beta cells.
Funding
Collaborations
Professor James Shapiro, Transplant Surgeon, Edmonton Clinical Islet Transplant Program, University of Alberta, Canada.
Professor Peter Senior, Endocrinologist, Edmonton Clinical Islet Transplant Program, University of Alberta, Canada.
Dr Euan Brown, Associate Professor, School of Engineering and Physical Sciences, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.
Professor Peter Jacobs, Artificial Intelligence for Medical Systems, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, USA.
Professor Bart Roep, Professor of Diabetology, Immunopathology and Intervention and Director of the National Diabetes Centre of Excellence, Leiden University, The Netherlands.
Alberta Diabetes Research Institute, Alberta, Canada.
Cell Gene Therapy Catapult, UK.
UK Type 1 Diabetes Research Consortium.
Novo Nordisk, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Bioxcelerate, Health Data Science Division of Optima Partners, Edinburgh.
PIRCHE, Digital Epitope Matching Technology Company, Berlin, Germany.
University of Nottingham, UK.
University of Edinburgh Collaborators:
Team
Basic and Translational Research
Dr David Mellis
Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow / Lab Manager
David Mellis on LinkedIn
Dr Laura Wagstaff
Post Doctoral Research Fellow
Dr Sol Olivera
Post Doctoral Research Fellow
Ms Carolynn Cairns
Senior Research Technician
Mr John Henderson
Research Technician
Mr Angus Comerford
PhD student
Ms Cora Ferry
Research Technician
Dr Marilena Candela
Post Doctoral Research Fellow
Ms Emma Scott
Research Technician
Ms Xiaoyan Zou
Research Technician
Dr Chinmai Patibandla
Post Doctoral Research Fellow
Dr Shaunak Burse
Post Doctoral Research Scientist - Dr Euan Brown, HWU
Ms Janet Man
Senior Research Technician - Prof Stuart Forbes, IRR
Clinical Research
Dr Nicola Baillie
Clinical Research Assistant
Dr Victoria Tyndall
Clinical Research Fellow
Ms Grace Auld
Clinical Project/Trial Manager
Dr Kathryn Hillman
Research Assistant
Dr Joanne Simpson
Research Assistant
Ms Megan Williamson
Research Group Administrator
Previous group members
Dr Laura Reid
Dr Faye Baxter
Dr Sophie Walker
Dr Adrian Garcia Burgos
Mr George McKay
Dr Stefania Brown
Ms Eileen Miller
Ms June Noble
Mr Maximilian Walden
Dr Jessica Scanlon
Dr Bernice Cheuk
Dr David Wilson
Publications
Showing 12 most recent publications
A UK key opinion leader perspective: Navigating the immunological and logistical transformation brought by stem cell-derived islets for the treatment of type 1 diabetes
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