Clemens Wittenbecher, Assistant Professor at the Department of Life Sciences, has been awarded an Ascending Investigator Grant within the Novo Nordisk Foundation Research Leader Programme. The grant supports research leaders who are working to establish and consolidate their research groups.
The funding totals DKK 12.2 million over a five-year period. Read more about his research and his reflections on what the grant means for his work.
How did you feel when you found out that you received the grant?
“It was one of the more exciting emails I received this week. The message was concise, so I read it twice to make sure it was indeed a positive funding decision.”
Can you tell us a little more about the project? Why do you think this project was selected?
“We will map acute multi-omics responses and longer-term adaptations to dietary patterns onto metabolic processes that drive type 2 diabetes risk. The goal is to define biomarker-based response types that enable targeted, clinically actionable prevention of diabetes and its complications.
As for why the project was selected, I can only speculate. The proposal outlines a clear path from multi-omics discovery to clinically useful biomarkers. It also addresses a key challenge by evaluating whether these biomarkers are robust across populations with diverse genetic backgrounds and cultural contexts by considering data from multiethnic cohorts in the US, Asia, and Africa.”
What does this grant mean for you and your research group?
“I have built a research program in biomarker-driven precision nutrition with support from the Wallenberg Data Driven Life Science Fellowship in precision medicine and diagnostics. This Novo Nordisk Foundation Investigator Grant provides a stable funding base to consolidate and expand this program over the next few years.”
What do you hope this grant will lead to in the longer term, for the research field and for society?
“I hope this work contributes to developing objective metrics that can guide and monitor lifestyle-based prevention of metabolic diseases. In the longer term, this could support a shift toward more proactive healthcare systems that help individuals maintain health rather than primarily treating disease after it develops.
Previous reading about Clemens Wittenbecher’s research
• Blood fat profiles confirm health benefits of replacing butter with high-quality plant oils
• Simple test could better predict your risk of heart disease
- Assistant Professor, Food and Nutrition Science, Life Sciences