Gossip Girl star Michelle Trachtenberg died from complications of diabetes

NEW YORK – American actress Michelle Trachtenberg, who was found dead in a Manhattan apartment in February, died from complications of diabetes, the New York City medical examiner’s office said on April 16.

The 39-year-old was known for starring in popular television series like Buffy The Vampire Slayer (1997 to 2003) and Gossip Girl (2007 to 2012).

The medical examiner’s office initially said the cause and manner of Trachtenberg’s death was “undetermined”. The office amended that conclusion after reviewing toxicology test results, spokesperson Julie Bolcer said on April 16, ruling that she died a natural death from complications of diabetes mellitus.

Officers with the New York Police Department found Trachtenberg unconscious and unresponsive in the apartment after responding to a 911 call just after 8am on Feb 26. She was pronounced dead by emergency medical workers, who had also responded, the authorities said at the time.

No autopsy was performed because of religious objections from Trachtenberg’s family, Ms Bolcer said.

According to entertainment news outlet People, sources close to the actress said she had received a liver transplant just months before she died. She did not publicly reveal any health conditions she had prior to her death.

Trachtenberg began acting in commercials at the age of three. Before she was 10, she was making regular appearances in TV shows, including Nickelodeon sitcom The Adventures Of Pete & Pete (1989 to 1996) and ABC daytime drama All My Children (1970 to 2011).

At 11, she landed the title role in the film Harriet The Spy (1996). She drew praise for her performance as Harriet Welsch, the precocious girl who draws scorn from schoolmates over her imagined spy adventures, which she meticulously chronicles in a notebook.

Trachtenberg found a new level of fame as a troubled teenager on the supernatural series Buffy The Vampire Slayer and as a conniving young socialite on Gossip Girl. NYTIMES