Scientists recently cured type 1 diabetes in mice using a technique that turns human stem cells into insulin-producing beta cells so fast that it creates a “rapid cure” for 9 months.
Created unwanted cells
Although previous research allowed experts to create these insulin-producing cells, they were not effective to cure type 1 diabetes for a number of reasons, including that the result produced other unwanted cells.
“In the case of beta cells, we might get other types of pancreas cells or liver cells,” explains Jeffrey R. Millman, Ph.D., assistant professor of medicine and biomedical engineering at Washington University School of Medicine. Although these off-target cells aren’t harmful, they offset the number of useful cells. “You need about a billion beta cells to cure a person of diabetes. But if a quarter of the cells you make are actually liver cells or other pancreas cells, instead of needing a billion cells, you need 1.25 billion cells. It makes curing the disease 25% more difficult.”
An innovative technique
So, why was the new approach different?
For the most recent attempts, the approach including targeting the inner “scaffolding” of the human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) to direct them to turn into pancreatic cells. By targeting the cytoskeleton of these hPSCs, the scientists were able to create better functioning cells and fewer irrelevant cells.
By transplanting the right aggregates of cells, the scientists were able to rapidly reverse severe preexisting diabetes in the mice and the normal blood sugar control was maintained for a minimum of 9 months.
“These mice had very severe diabetes with blood sugar readings of more than 500 mg/dL—levels that could be fatal for a person-and when we gave the mice the insulin-secreting cells, within 2 weeks their blood glucose levels had return to normal and stayed that way for many months.”
Next steps include testing the cells in other animals and then automating the technical to produce cells for humans.
