CloseMeet The Directors
The DRC Leadership Team
ALBERTO HAYEK, M.D.
Co-Founder and Research Scientist
ALBERTO HAYEK, M.D.
Co-Founder and Research Scientist
Alberto is a Co-Founder of the Diabetes Research Connection and serves on the Scientific Review Committee. He is Medical Director at San Diego Scripps/Whittier Diabetes Institute and Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics at UCSD Medical School.
ALLISON ORECHWA, PH.D.
Board Member
ALLISON ORECHWA, PH.D.
Board Member
Allison is a scientist, mother, and Type 1 Diabetic with a passion for fueling innovations in health and health care. She brings to the board a strong background in research administration – previously for the U.S. Department of Education and currently for the University of Southern California.
AMY ADAMS
Co-Founder
AMY ADAMS
Co-Founder
Amy’s son was diagnosed with T1D when he was 5 years old. She served on the Board of Directors and various committees for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Chicago chapter for 10 years and was a contributing writer to Insulin Free Times. This is her second term on the DRC Board, and she has served as the Lay Person Review Committee Chair since DRC’s inception
CHARLES “C.C.” KING, PH.D.
Co-Founder
CHARLES “C.C.” KING, PH.D.
Co-Founder
Charles (C.C.) is a Co-Founder of the Diabetes Research Connection and is a Research Scientist who has helped define the molecular mechanisms of human embryonic stem cell differentiation from pluripotency toward pancreatic endoderm.
DAVID WINKLER
Co-Founder and Vice Chair
DAVID WINKLER
Co-Founder and Vice Chair
David, a lawyer and entrepreneur, has had Type 1 Diabetes for over 60 years and also has several family members and friends with the disease. He is a founder of the Diabetes Research Connection and currently serves as the Chief Financial Officer. David has been a tireless advocate and donor for diabetes research.
ERIC ZWISLER
President / Chair
ERIC ZWISLER
President / Chair
Eric, an internationalist and business entrepreneur, is committed to finding better treatments and a cure for Type 1 Diabetes. His son Taylor was diagnosed with T1D as a child. Eric is active in several T1D organizations, including most recently as board chair of the La Jolla Institute for Immunology.
ETHAN HARKLEROAD, CPA
Board Member
ETHAN HARKLEROAD, CPA
Board Member
HEATHER PRADO
Board Member
HEATHER PRADO
Board Member
Resourceful, business-minded, patient-centered attorney with over 13 years of in-house counsel experience in the medical device and MedTech industries including 6 years in diabetes care. Ms. Prado advises on a variety of matters relevant to product development and commercialization matters including regulatory, advertising and marketing, IP risk and strategy, privacy, M&A and licensing transactions, third-party collaborations, and supply chain contractual matters. Recognized as a creative and proactive business partner with strong analytical skills, attention to detail, sound judgment, and a patient solutions-focused approach to advancing business objectives and effectively managing risk.
MATTHIAS VON HERRATH, MD
Scientific Director
MATTHIAS VON HERRATH, MD
Scientific Director
As a renowned physician-scientist in the field of immunology and drug development for Type 1 Diabetes, Matthias is widely recognized for his groundbreaking work in understanding the molecular mechanisms of T1D and developing novel therapies for this disease. He currently serves as Scientific Director at Diabetes Research Institute in Florida, VP and Senior Medical Officer at Novo Nordisk overseeing the company’s research and development efforts in diabetes care, and is past Director for the T1D Research Center at La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology. Matthias is optimistic about the promising new directions in diabetes research, stating, “It has never been a more exciting time!“
NIGEL CALCUTT, PH.D.
Co-founder and Research Scientist
NIGEL CALCUTT, PH.D.
Co-Founder and Research Scientist
Nigel is a Co-Founder of the Diabetes Research Connection and is a UCSD professor of Pathology whose research is focused on therapies for diabetic neuropathy and neuropathic pain.
RON LEIBOW, JD
Board Member
RON LEIBOW, JD
Board Member
With over 40 years’ experience as a business lawyer at the international law firm Kay Scholer LLP, Ron has recently shifted to consulting for newly emerging companies and those undergoing business restructuring. His personal connections have made him acutely aware of the challenges faced by those living with T1D. Motivated by a desire to advance research towards a cure, he joined the DRC Board.
STEPHEN KORNICZKY
Vice Chair
STEPHEN KORNICZKY
Vice Chair
Steve is the Partner and Former Intellectual Property Practice Group Leader at Sheppard, Mullin. He is also a trial lawyer with a focus on patent litigation. He is active in several professional, community, and charitable organizations including Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), San Diego Chapter where he was a board member from 2008-2014. Steve’s niece was diagnosed with T1D twenty years ago.
VINCENZO CIRULLI, M.D., PH.D.
Scientific Director
VINCENZO CIRULLI, M.D., PH.D.
Scientific Director
Vincenzo is a physician-scientist who has dedicated his entire career to studying a special class of proteins, called “cell adhesion molecules”, that regulate cell-to-cell interactions in virtually all tissues in the body, including pancreatic islets. A major goal of his lab is to understand the function of these proteins as biochemical signals of cell-to-cell communication in stem cell-derived islet progenitors, in developing and mature β-cells.
DRC has distributed approximately
$3M to research
Can the Inhibition of One Specific Body Gene Prevent Type 1 Diabetes? (Melanie Shapiro)
Taming a Particularly Lethal Category of Cells May Reduce/Eliminate the Onset of T1D (Dr. J. Dwyer)
A Potential Second Cure for T1D by Re-Educating the Patient’s Immune System (Dr. Leonardo Ferreira)
Stakeholder-Engaged Precision Health for Longevity and Healthy Aging with Type 1 Diabetes (T1D)
Dr. Han Zhu’s Project
Dr. Sandra Mara Ferreira’s Project
We grant up to $75,000 to support each research project
#InnovativeDiabetesResearch