Dr. Jiudan Zhang | Diabetes | Best Researcher Award 

Dr. Jiudan Zhang is an accomplished endocrinologist and PhD researcher currently based at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, with clinical and academic affiliations to The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, China. With over a decade of focused experience in endocrinology and metabolism, Dr. Zhang’s work explores the complex interplay between nutrition, glucagon regulation, and metabolic disorders, particularly type 2 diabetes. She has authored numerous high-impact publications and actively contributes to international conferences and research projects funded by EFSD and AiF. Her contributions have earned her prestigious fellowships, including support from the China Scholarship Council and the German Diabetes Association.

Author Profile

Scopus

Education

Dr. Jiudan Zhang’s journey into the field of medicine began with her enrollment at Southern Medical University, one of China’s premier medical institutions. From 2006 to 2014, she pursued both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Endocrinology and Metabolism, laying a robust foundation for a career in clinical research and metabolic medicine. Her formative academic years were marked by a deep curiosity about the hormonal and metabolic interplay in chronic diseases like diabetes and obesity. This early exposure to endocrinological systems became the bedrock of her future contributions in translational medicine. To further expand her academic perspectives, she engaged in international research training, including a visiting stint at Imperial College London in 2018 and Ludwig-Maximilians University (LMU) Munich in 2019. These experiences refined her methodological approach and introduced her to a wide network of global researchers.

Experience

Professionally, Dr. Zhang began her medical practice at the Children’s Hospital of Zhejiang University in 2014 as a resident doctor in endocrinology. A year later, she transitioned to the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University, where she currently serves as an attending physician in the Department of Endocrinology. In 2020, she advanced her academic pursuits by joining the prestigious Department of Endocrinology and Nutrition at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin as a PhD student. This move marked a significant pivot toward research excellence in Europe’s leading medical research environment. Her dual roles as a clinician and scientist enable her to bridge patient care with data-driven discovery.

Research Focus

Dr. Zhang’s research has consistently focused on type 2 diabetes, glucagon secretion, gut hormones, and postprandial metabolic responses. Her work intricately dissects how dietary composition—particularly protein and sugar intake—affects glucagon dynamics, insulin sensitivity, and liver fat content in both diabetic and non-diabetic individuals. One of her most cited studies, published in Clinical Nutrition (2023), explored the implication of sugar, protein, and incretins in excessive glucagon secretion after meals in patients with type 2 diabetes. She has also contributed significantly to research on isomaltulose vs. sucrose in metabolic syndrome patients, showing how alternative carbohydrates influence gut hormone responses and metabolic health. Dr. Zhang is deeply involved in large-scale research initiatives such as the FAIR project, funded by the European Fund for Sustainable Development, which investigates immune-metabolic remission in diabetes through fasting, and the MOCA project, examining the role of dairy protein composition in preventing fatty liver disease. These projects demonstrate her ability to conduct interdisciplinary and clinically impactful research.