Insulin-secreting cells from stem cells of patients with Type 1 diabetes have been created by researchers from the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Harvard University. This would be a step towards personalized diabetes care, as stem cells from the patients themselves would be used to manufacture the body's needed insulin.
The immune system of a person with Type 1 diabetes destroys beta cells in the pancreas. These are the cells which produce insulin, Web MD said. Insulin is the hormone that helps transport glucose in the body.
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Insulin Shots Might Not Be Necessary In The Future
"In theory, if we could replace the damaged cells in these individuals with new pancreatic beta cells—whose primary function is to store and release insulin to control blood glucose—patients with type 1 diabetes wouldn't need insulin shots anymore," said first author Jeffrey R. Millman, PhD via Science Daily. Millman is an assistant professor of medicine and of biomedical engineering at the Washington University School of Medicine.
The researchers created insulin-secreting cells that produce insulin when they sense sugar. It was tested in culture and in mice. In response to glucose, the new cells, produced insulin, according to The Source. The Source is a publication of the Washington University in St. Louis.
Insulin-Producing Cells May Be Up For Human Trials In Five Years
According to The Source, Millman said that the stem-cell derived beta cells may be ready for use in human research in three to five years. The insulin-producing cells will be implanted under the skin of patients with Type 1 diabetes.
"What we're envisioning is an outpatient procedure in which some sort of device filled with the cells would be placed just beneath the skin," said Millman. Millman and the other researchers' findings may also be useful for patients with Type 2 diabetes, neonatal diabetes and Wolfram syndrome.
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