Madras Diabetes Research Foundation
Leading the fight against diabetes through cutting -edge research comprehensive care and community education
Research
Care
Education
What Makes Us Different
30+
Years in Diabetes Research
1800+
Research Publications
50+
Collaboraters
About us
Madras Diabetes Research Foundation (MDRF) established in 1996 by Dr. V. Mohan, internationally acclaimed diabetologist and research scientist and his wife Late Dr. Rema Mohan, internationally known specialist in diabetic eye disorders. MDRF was founded with the vision of providing a world class environment for research in diabetes and its complications. Within its short span of existence, MDRF has built up strengths in basic, clinical and epidemiological research. The quality of its research in diabetes and its complications is evidenced by numerous original publications in reputed peer reviewed journals. The institute also collaborates with several international and national centres.
THANDAV
THANDAV stands for Taking High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and Dance to Adolescent girls and women for Victory over NCDs.THANDAV is a 10-min HIIT routine consisting of 4 loops including a 2 minutes high (80-90% of max Hear Rate (HR) ) to 30 seconds low (50-60% of max HR).
Research Departments
Our research is structured into specialized departments led by distinguished experts. These departments collaboratively drive innovation and contribute significantly to the advancement of diabetes and related health research.
Diabetology
The Diabetology Department is led by Dr. V. Mohan, MD, FRCP (London, Edinburgh, Glasgow & Ireland), Ph.D, DSc, D.Sc (Hon. Causa), FNASc — a renowned expert with over three decades of experience in diabetes research and care.
Ocular Research
Visual disability from diabetes is a significant public health problem and the need of the hour is to assess the burden of different aspects of eye problems seen in diabetes. With this in view the Ocular Research Unit at the MDRF was established in 1996 to study the retinal diseases seen in diabetes.
Cell & Molecular Biology
The Department of Cell & Molecular Biology under the supervision of Dr. M. Balasubramanyam was started in 1999 with the objective studying and adding new information to the existing knowledge on the pathogenesis of diabetes and its complications at the cell and molecular level.
Clinical Trials
The department under the guidance of Dr. Guha Pradeepa plays a very important role in the development of scientific research through liaison with other departments by assisting in proposal writing to obtain national and international grants to carryout collaborative research
Our Team
Research Operations
Ocular Research
Epidemiology
Clinical Trials
Cell & Molecular Biology
Young Diabetes Research
Vascular Biology
Physical Activity Research
Latest Research Publications
- Association Between Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Heart Failure: A Retrospective Study from a Tertiary Care Diabetes Centre in India. Diabetes Therapy. 2025. Published online May 8 2025.
- Epigenome-wide association study identifies a specific panel of DNA methylation signatures for antenatal and postpartum depressive symptoms. Journal of Affective Disorders. 2025;383:195-206.
- A Novel High-Intensity Short Interval Dance Intervention (THANDAV) for Non-Communicable Disease Prevention Tailored to Asian Indian Adolescent Girls. Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology. 2025: Apr 21:19322968251332925. Epub ahead of print
- Congenital Hyperinsulinism India Association: An Approach to Address the Challenges and Opportunities of a Rare Disease. Med Sci (Basel). 2025 ;13:37.
- Expression of Salivary and Serum IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 in Individuals With Diabetes and Oral Cancer. Journal of Maxillofacial and Oral Surgery. 2025;24:432-440.
Research Collaborations
