Barbara B. Kahn is an
endocrinologist
Endocrinology (from ''endocrine'' + '' -ology'') is a branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific secretions known as hormones. It is also concerned with the integration of developmental events ...
and the George Richards Minot professor of medicine at
Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...
. She is also the vice chair for research strategy in the department of medicine at
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in Boston, Massachusetts is a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and one of the founding members of Beth Israel Lahey Health. It was formed out of the 1996 merger of Beth Israel Hospital (f ...
, and was formerly the chief of the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism at Beth Israel Deaconess. Her research focuses on
insulin resistance
Insulin resistance (IR) is a pathological response in which cells in insulin-sensitive tissues in the body fail to respond normally to the hormone insulin or downregulate insulin receptors in response to hyperinsulinemia.
Insulin is a horm ...
and
type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes (T2D), formerly known as adult-onset diabetes, is a form of diabetes mellitus that is characterized by high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and relative lack of insulin. Common symptoms include increased thirst, frequent ...
.
Early life and education
Kahn graduated from
Stanford University
Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
with a B.A. in 1972 and an M.D. in 1977. She also earned an M.S. from
University of California Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkeley ...
in 1975.
She trained in
internal medicine
Internal medicine, also known as general medicine in Commonwealth nations, is a medical specialty for medical doctors focused on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases in adults. Its namesake stems from "treatment of diseases of ...
and
endocrinology
Endocrinology (from ''endocrine system, endocrine'' + ''wikt:-logy#Suffix, -ology'') is a branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific secretions known as hormones. It is also concerned with the ...
at the
University of California Davis
The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Davis, California, United States. It is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University ...
. She then did a fellowship at the
National Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...
from 1982 to 1986.
[
]
Career
Kahn began as an instructor at Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...
. In 1989, she became an assistant professor. From 1990 to 2000, she was chief of the diabetes unit at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in Boston, Massachusetts is a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and one of the founding members of Beth Israel Lahey Health. It was formed out of the 1996 merger of Beth Israel Hospital (f ...
. In 2000, she was made full professor and chief of the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism. She served in this position until 2011, when she became vice chair for research strategy.[
She became an associate member of the ]Broad Institute
The Eli and Edythe L. Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard (IPA: , pronunciation respelling: ), often referred to as the Broad Institute, is a biomedical and genomic research center located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. The institu ...
in 2006 and was promoted to institute member in 2018.[
Since 2013, she has been the director of the Beth Israel Deaconess Department of Medicine Foundation board. She currently serves on the ]NIH
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...
/ NIDDK National Advisory Council.[ She is on the editorial boards of ]Cell Metabolism
''Cell Metabolism'' is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering physiology, with an emphasis on understanding the molecular basis of how the body self-regulates in the face of change, and how disturbances in these balances can lead to di ...
and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
''Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America'' (often abbreviated ''PNAS'' or ''PNAS USA'') is a peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scientific journal. It is the official journal of the National Academy of Scie ...
.[
]
Research
Her research focuses on insulin resistance
Insulin resistance (IR) is a pathological response in which cells in insulin-sensitive tissues in the body fail to respond normally to the hormone insulin or downregulate insulin receptors in response to hyperinsulinemia.
Insulin is a horm ...
and type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes (T2D), formerly known as adult-onset diabetes, is a form of diabetes mellitus that is characterized by high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and relative lack of insulin. Common symptoms include increased thirst, frequent ...
. Her lab has identified signaling pathways
Signal transduction is the process by which a chemical or physical signal is transmitted through a cell as a series of molecular events. Proteins responsible for detecting stimuli are generally termed receptors, although in some cases the term ...
involved in insulin sensitivity, weight maintenance, and regulation of hunger. She has also been involved in research on the GLUT4
Glucose transporter type 4 (GLUT4), also known as solute carrier family 2, facilitated glucose transporter member 4, is a protein encoded, in humans, by the ''SLC2A4'' gene. GLUT4 is the insulin-regulated glucose transporter found primarily in ad ...
transporter and its role in the regulation of glucose tolerance.
Awards and honors
* 1994 Elected to the American Society for Clinical Investigation
The American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI), established in 1908, is one of the oldest and most respected medical honor societies in the United States.
Organization and purpose
The ASCI is an honorary society to which more than 2,800 p ...
* 1995 Eli Lilly Award for Outstanding Scientific Achievement, American Diabetes Association[
* 2001 Elected to the ]Association of American Physicians
The Association of American Physicians (AAP) is an honorary medical society founded in 1885 by the Canadian physician Sir William Osler and six other distinguished physicians of his era for "the advancement of scientific and practical medicine ...
* 2005 Elected to the National Academy of Medicine
The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), known as the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineerin ...
* 2006 National Institutes of Health MERIT Award
* 2006 Elected to the American Association for the Advancement of Science
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is a United States–based international nonprofit with the stated mission of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsib ...
* 2016 Banting Medal for Outstanding Scientific Achievement, American Diabetes Association
* 2017 Elected to the National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...
* 2019 FASEB Excellence in Science Award
* 2019 American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellow
References
External links
Interview with Barbara Kahn in published in Cell Metabolism
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kahn, Barbara B.
Stanford University alumni
University of California, Berkeley alumni
American endocrinologists
American women endocrinologists
Harvard University faculty
Broad Institute people
Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Members of the National Academy of Medicine