Mexican-American sisters Eugenia Montalvo (near right) and Jesusa Salmon have type 2 diabetes. They are part of a study that helped researchers find a gene involved in this widespread disease.

The more scientists learn about diabetes, the more complex the disease becomes. Multiple genes, intricate cell-signaling disruptions and environmental insults all play important roles, although their precise mechanisms are unclear. Meanwhile, the pressure to find ways to combat this disease is greater than ever.   continued...

Photo: Dan Cohen

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Reprinted from the HHMI Bulletin,
December 2001, pages 16-21.
©2001 Howard Hughes Medical Institute