Anna Casu, MD
Associate Investigator
Translational Research

Overview
Dr. Anna Casu is Associate Investigator at the Translational Research Institute and Von Weller Family Chair in Type 1 Diabetes Research. Her research focuses on type 1 diabetes (T1D) epidemiology, prediction, and pathogenic mechanisms linked to the relationship between the exocrine and endocrine pancreas and the onset of T1D in adults.
She obtained her medical degree and completed her residency and fellowship in endocrinology at the University of Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy, when she published articles about the world’s second-highest incidence rate of T1D on the island. She became a Post-Doctoral Associate, then Research Associate, at the University of Pittsburgh, then moved back to Italy where she became Chief of the Diabetes and Islet Transplantation Unit and Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, both based in Palermo, Italy. There, she established and managed the pancreatic islet transplant unit and program, and her research was funded by the European Union.
Leveraging her knowledge of human pancreas biology, Dr. Casu’s current research interest focuses on the relationship between the exocrine and the endocrine pancreas, with an emphasis on cell-to-cell interactions and circulating biomarkers. She is the local principal investigator of the NCI-funded New-Onset Diabetes (NOD) study of the Chronic Pancreatitis Diabetes Pancreatic Cancer Consortium and co-investigator for the NIH/NIDDK funded Type 1 Diabetes in Acute Pancreatitis Consortium, where she serves as co-chair of the Immunology Working Group. She actively collaborates with AdventHealth gastroenterologists and surgeons specializing in caring for patients with disorders of the pancreas.
Articles
Extracellular vesicle proteomics and phosphoproteomics identify pathways for increased risk in patients hospitalized with COVID-19 and type 2 diabetes mellitus
DIABETES RESEARCH AND CLINICAL PRACTICE
2023
Design of the Advancing Care for Type 1 Diabetes and Obesity Network energy metabolism and sequential multiple assignment randomized trial nutrition pilot studies: An integrated approach to develop weight management solutions for individuals with type 1 d
Contemporary clinical trials
2022
Proteomics and Phosphoproteomics of Circulating Extracellular Vesicles Provide New Insights into Diabetes Pathobiology
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
2022
In Vitro Evaluation of Nanoerythrosome Cytotoxicity and Uptake in Pancreatic Endothelial Cells: Implications for beta-Cell Imaging Applications br
LANGMUIR
2022
Weight management in young adults with type 1 diabetes: The advancing care for type 1 diabetes and obesity network sequential multiple assignment randomized trial pilot results
DIABETES OBESITY & METABOLISM
2022
The Intestinal Microbiota and Short-Chain Fatty Acids in Association with Advanced Metrics of Glycemia and Adiposity Among Young Adults with Type 1 Diabetes and Overweight or Obesity
CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS IN NUTRITION
2022
Coordinated regulation of gene expression and microRNA changes in adipose tissue and circulating extracellular vesicles in response to pioglitazone treatment in humans with type 2 diabetes
FRONTIERS IN ENDOCRINOLOGY
2022
Evaluating the Immunopathogenesis of Diabetes After Acute Pancreatitis in the Diabetes RElated to Acute Pancreatitis and Its Mechanisms Study From the Type 1 Diabetes in Acute Pancreatitis Consortium
PANCREAS
2022
Recruitment and Retention Strategies for the Diabetes RElated to Acute Pancreatitis and Its Mechanisms Study From the Type 1 Diabetes in Acute Pancreatitis Consortium
PANCREAS
2022
Impact of bariatric surgery and weight loss medications in adults with type 1 diabetes in the T1D Exchange Clinic Registry
JOURNAL OF DIABETES AND ITS COMPLICATIONS
2021
Education & Training
Education
University of Caligari, Italy
Residency
University of Caligari, Italy
Fellowship
University of Caligari, Italy