ADA's 2016 Harold Rifkin Award goes to Professor Emeritus Seino (27 May 2016)

On 27 May, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) announced that Professor Emeritus Yutaka Seino had been selected to receive the 2016 Harold Rifkin Award for Distinguished International Service in the Cause of Diabetes.

Dr Harold Rifkin (1916-1997) supported efforts to increase awareness of the burden of diabetes worldwide and worked to promote collaboration among related organizations. The award given in his honor recognizes individuals who have performed an outstanding service in the cause of diabetes with an international perspective and with international impact, as well as those who have made significant contributions to raising awareness of the disease on a global scale with a view to improving the quality of care and life for the afflicted.

Professor Emeritus Seino has pioneered efforts to standardize care and enhance education for diabetes patients across Asia, and has made numerous contributions to research and international service. His many years of research have yielded the discovery that type 2 diabetes in Asian patients is characterized by impaired insulin secretion, rather than by insulin resistance. Following this line of research, he has helped advance the understanding of the physiology of incretin hormones, which had been found to stimulate insulin secretion, paving the way for the development of incretin-based insulin-increasing medications.

Professor Seino will be presented with his award during ADA's 76th Scientific Sessions, which will take place 10-14 June 2016 at the Ernest N Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.