Researchers at the University of Miami successfully transplanted insulin-producing cells to six monkeys with diabetes, bringing them one step closer to a possible cure for humans. The cell transplants, taken from a donor pancreas, enabled the monkeys to stay off insulin shots for a year or more, the scientists said Tuesday. The findings will soon be published in the medical journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. But it could be part of an eventual cure. Type 1 diabetes, also known as insulin-dependent and juvenile diabetes, is the most severe form of the disease and can lead to complications affecting almost every part of the body.
Most patients develop it during childhood.
While Auchincloss is excited about the new research, he pointed out that a number of questions need to be answered. Since diabetes in monkeys is not the same as Type 1 diabetes in humans, medical experts are not sure how well anti-CD154 will work on humans. Researchers at the University of Miami hope to soon test the new drug on humans with insulin-dependent diabetes.