Researchers are focusing on the ultimate quest to regenerate theinsulin in pancreatic stem cells and replace the need for regular injections. In particular, researchers at the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute have demonstrated that newly produced insulin cells can respond to glucose and produce insulin after stimulation with two FDA-approved drugs. Food and Drug Administration American in just 48 hours.
The results of research were published on Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy.
Stimulate insulin production in pancreatic stem cells
The researchers confirmed that this pathway of reawakening of producing cells is viable in age groups between 7 and 61 years, providing much-needed insight into the mechanisms underlying beta cell regeneration.
Using pancreatic cells derived from donors of type 1 diabetic children and adults and from a non-diabetic person, a team led by Professor Sam El-Osta has shown how the insulin-producing cells that are destroyed in people with type 1 diabetes can be regenerated into cells that sense glucose and functionally secrete the hormone.
In this latest study from the Human Epigenetics team, researchers show that small inhibitory molecules currently used for rare cancers and approved by the US FDA can rapidly restore peptide hormone production in pancreatic cells destroyed by diabetes.
Although current pharmaceutical options for treating diabetes help control blood glucose levels, they do not prevent, stop, or reverse the destruction of insulin-secreting cells.
The new therapeutic approach has the potential to become the first disease-modifying treatment for type 1 diabetes by facilitating the production of glucose-responsive insulin by harnessing the patient's remaining pancreatic cells, thus allowing people living with diabetes to potentially achieve Independence from injections 24 hours a day.
This disease-modifying treatment also represents a promising solution for the significant number of Australians living with insulin-dependent diabetes, who represent 30% of those with type 2 diabetes.
The development of new drug therapies aimed at restoring pancreatic function addresses the harsh reality of donor organ shortage: “We see this regenerative approach as an important step forward towards clinical development,” said Professor El-Osta.
“Until now, the regenerative process has been incidental and, in the absence of confirmation, especially the epigenetic mechanisms governing such regeneration in humans remain poorly understood,” he said.
This research demonstrates that 48 hours of stimulation with small molecule inhibitors is sufficient to restore insulin production by damaged pancreatic cells.
JDRF senior researcher Dr Keith Al-Hasani said the next step will be to study the new regenerative approach in a preclinical model. The goal is to develop these inhibitors as drugs to restore insulin production in people living with diabetes.
As work progresses, so does the need to translate quickly. Over 530 million adults live with diabetes and that number is expected to rise to 643 million by 2030.
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