Diabetes—science, serendipity and common sense

Abstract

This paper is dedicated to young researchers in diabetes. One such person was Frederick Banting who, with his colleagues, isolated insulin in 1921, saving the lives of literally millions of people. What factors allowed Banting and other scientists to produce work that has immensely benefited the human race? I propose that it is the combination of good scientific background (the 'prepared mind'), commonly some serendipity taken with a good dose of common sense and supplemented by enthusiasm, tenacity and good mentoring, which drives the 'power of observation' and the ability to take forward the good idea. I give examples from history to support this and then discuss some of the 'truths, perspectives and controversies' within the diabetes arena when I first started in diabetes research in the late 1970s. I describe how my appetite was initially 'whetted' for research by moving to an excellent clinical research environment with encouragement to test ideas and controversies initially in a clinical research programme, followed by more scientific ⁄ basic research. The work that I performed as a young doctor and research fellow led to a lifelong professional interest in three major areas-causes and interventions for diabetes vascular disease, studies of the molecular genetics of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes and work on diabetes in different ethnic groups. I provide a summation of my own and other people's work to demonstrate how research can be progressed and lead to patient benefit as well as providing an incredibly rewarding career. I believe that we need to encourage and put more resources into development of young doctors and scientists wishing to undertake research in our discipline. Areas ripe for much-needed clinical research programmes, for example, include work on best practice ⁄ provision of health care, application of the evidence base from clinical trials to achieve public health gains, attention to adherence issues and better-tolerated therapies. Most importantly, a greater emphasis on prevention through public health measures and 'buy in' from the whole population is urgently required.

Looking for opportunistic discovery of information in recent biomedical research – a content analysis

“…With the explosion in the volume of data that can be captured, processed, and analyzed, the possibility of encountering unexpected information during research performance is growing. Indeed, several notable medical advancements have resulted from recognized instances of ODI during scientific studies with other foci (Barnett, 2011; Hargrave‐Thomas, Yu, & Reynisson, 2012; Lee, 2011; Ligon, 2004; Mayor, 2010; Mould, 1995; Rubanyi, 2011; Young, Ashdown, Arnold, & Subramonian, 2008). However, little is known about the experience of ODI across the research community.…”