He is the Chief Academic Officer at Joslin Diabetes Center, the Mary K. Iacocca Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School[1] and a member of the National Academy of Sciences since 1999.

He moved to Boston in 1981 when he was appointed Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Research Director of the Joslin Diabetes Center.

[5] More recent discoveries from his lab encompass defining alterations in the signaling network in type 2 diabetes, including the important role of insulin action in unexpected tissues such as brain, both in physiologic regulation and potentially in development of Alzheimer's disease.

His lab at Joslin has also made contributions to the understanding of obesity by showing that fat cells, called adipocytes, have different developmental origins and cellular functions that lead to risk of metabolic disease.

Kahn's work with adult humans has demonstrated that they have active brown fat that is central to redefining its role in metabolic regulation and protection from obesity.