Mark Atkinson (scientist)

Background and education

Mark Atkinson was born and raised in southeastern Michigan. He attended the University of Michigan – Dearborn where he received a B.S. in microbiology in 1983. Atkinson next received a Ph.D. from the Department of Pathology at the University of Florida in 1987.

While at the University of Florida, Atkinson studied under diabetes researcher Dr. Noel Maclaren, who became his mentor and fostered Atkinson’s interest in type 1 diabetes research. His work with Maclaren led Atkinson to develop his three goals of determining what causes type 1 diabetes, identifying a means to predict T1D, and developing a way to prevent and cure the disease.

Academic career

Atkinson has been teaching and conducting research in the Department of Pathology at the University of Florida College of Medicine since 1988. He is currently the American Diabetes Association Eminent Scholar for Diabetes Research and the Jeffrey Keene Family Professor at the University of Florida, as well as the Director for the Diabetes Institute at that institution.

Type 1 diabetes research

Atkinson’s research activities have a broad scope, but most fall under the umbrella of preventing and curing type 1 diabetes. Specific areas of focus include disease prediction, the role of environment in the initiation of type 1 diabetes, stem cells and beta cell regeneration, pancreatic pathology, clinical trials seeking to prevent or reverse type 1 diabetes, the identification of markers of tolerance, and devising ways to instill proper immunoregulation. Atkinson has been the recipient of funding awards from entities such as the National Institutes of Health, JDRF, the American Diabetes Association, and the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust.

Research approaches

Atkinson has conducted numerous studies that take different approaches to predicting, preventing, and curing type 1 diabetes. His earliest efforts focused on the use of autoantibodies, both anti-insulin and anti-glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD), for that purpose. He was also amongst the first to describe cellular immune responses against GAD in both humans and the NOD mouse model of type 1 diabetes. He has extensively utilized NOD mice as a means to identify agents that could be translated to studies seeking to prevent or reverse type 1 diabetes but at the same time, has stated that such efforts need be approached with caution. His publication in the journal Nature Medicine noting the nearly 200 ways to prevent diabetes in that animal model elicited mixed responses from the research community.

Atkinson was one of the first to propose “combination therapies” to prevent or reverse the disease, as well as the repurposing of existing treatments and agents already approved for other diseases and conditions. Atkinson has led or contributed to clinical trials utilizing several types of interventions to stop the progression of or reverse type 1 diabetes, including prophylactic insulin, glutamic acid decarboxylase, cord blood, cord blood plus Omega-3 FA, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (GCSF), and anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG) plus GCSF.

Atkinson is currently leading an NIH funded clinical research trial aiming to assess immune function during different stages of type 1 diabetes. The goal is to learn more about the genetics and immune function of blood cells, diet, and viruses and how they relate to the progression of T1D.

Atkinson is also active in studies assessing the human intestinal microbiome, pancreatic pathology, human pancreatic weight and beta cell development, as well as improving methods of data management.

NPOD

Atkinson is the Executive Director for nPOD, the Network for Pancreatic Organ donors with Diabetes, the world's largest "open access" biobank of human tissues from persons with or at varying levels of risk for type 1 diabetes. Through nPOD, Atkinson and other collaborators support research utilizing transplant-grade human tissues obtained from organ donors, including pancreas, spleen, whole blood, serum, lymph nodes, pancreatic lymph nodes, skin and bone marrow. The goal is to better understand the causes of type 1 diabetes and identify potential approaches to curing the disease. Atkinson has directed nPOD since its founding in 2007, during which time it has supported over 210 research projects in 19 countries worldwide.

Research collaborations

In addition to nPOD, Atkinson participates in a number of other collaborative research efforts. He is one of ten members of the Brehm Coalition for Type 1 Diabetes Research, and one of four initial members of the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust’s Type 1 Diabetes Research Initiative. Atkinson also collaborates on a number of research initiatives with investigators around the globe as well as with his colleagues at the University of Florida’s Diabetes Institute.

Leadership and influence in the field

Atkinson is the author of over 425 publications including numerous journal articles and book chapters. Between 1992 and 2002, Atkinson had 48 papers cited a total of 2,724 times, making him one of the five most highly cited diabetes researchers in the world.

Atkinson provides leadership to numerous entities that focus on research and service to the type 1 diabetes community, and currently provides administrative or advisory service to JDRF, the American Diabetes Association, Diapedia, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Immunology of Diabetes Society. He is a charter member of the NIH’s Immune Tolerance Network Scientific Advisory Board, Chair of the NIH's Human Islet Research Network (HIRN), and a Steering Committee member of NIH TrialNet .

Atkinson also formerly served as an Associate Editor for the journal Diabetes. He now serves as ad hoc Editor-in-Chief for that journal as well as Diabetes Care.

Commercial and industry work

Along with his colleagues at the University of Florida, Atkinson is pursuing a vaccine strategy for preventing type 1 diabetes. The approach seeks to eliminate the immune response directed at insulin that is present in patients with the disease by generating antigen-specific Tregs (regulatory T cells) in response to the antigens of interest rather than try to eliminate the autoreactive destructive cells. To further this line of research, Atkinson and other investigators started a spin-off company called OneVax, LLC. OneVax seeks to develop and commercialize a novel vaccine formula to prevent and/or reverse type 1 diabetes, incorporating biomaterials and polymers for applications including multicomponent and time-release drug delivery. Atkinson serves as CEO of OneVax.

In addition to OneVax, Atkinson is a consultant to a number of companies in the pharmaceutical/biotechnology industry including Diamyd Medical, Genzyme, Sanofi, Novo Nordisk, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, and others.

Honors and awards

Atkinson has received awards for his scientific and humanitarian efforts from several organizations, including JDRF, the American Diabetes Association, and the Children’s Diabetes Foundation. Selected awards include:

Humanitarian interests

In addition to his research, Atkinson has many notable humanitarian contributions. His chief efforts in this area have been to improve conditions, care, and access to medications for people with diabetes in developing nations. Atkinson and Dr. Graham Ogle, Director of the International Diabetes Federation’s Life for a Child program, published an article in the journal Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology that focused on the need to bring insulin to individuals throughout the globe who are facing a challenge to survive. The article noted that amongst the most common causes of death for a child with type 1 diabetes throughout the world is lack of access to insulin, and laid out several solutions to overcoming this challenge.

Atkinson has joined with other leaders with interests in humanitarian care calling for a means to provide insulin to 100 percent of the world’s population who need it by 2022, the centennial anniversary of insulin availability. Atkinson also serves as an Advisory Board Member to the Life for a Child program.

Efforts in Haiti

Atkinson has been widely cited for his efforts in Haiti, particularly those with the Haitian Foundation for Diabetes and Cardiovascular Diseases (Fondation Haitienne de Diabete et de Maladies Cardio-Vasculaires), overseen by Dr. Nancy Larco. Atkinson has traveled to Haiti numerous times to provide medical, dental, and educational assistance, including after the 2010 Haiti earthquake. Along with traveling to Haiti immediately after the earthquake, he and his wife Carol organized a large shipment of water, food, and medical and building supplies.

Hope on the Move

Atkinson and his wife co-founded a non-profit organization, Hope on the Move, for humanitarian causes, primarily related to providing medical and dental care to developing nations. Hope on the Move has provided medical services and health education for more than 10,000 individuals. Atkinson serves as secretary, treasurer and director of Hope on the Move.

Insulin for Life USA

Atkinson is the president of Insulin for Life USA, a non-profit organization that collects insulin, test strips, and other diabetes management supplies and distributes them to needy individuals in developing nations as well as in the United States following natural disasters.

Selected publications