A huge population of the world is affected with diabetes. Diabetes have become one of the most commonly witnessed diseases or disorder. There are only control measures and there is no actual treatment for Diabetes. It is caused due to genetic / inheritance or autoimmune diseases. Uncontrolled diet could also be a cause for type II diabetes. There are three types – type I, type II, Gestational diabetes where type – I is no production or very low synthesis of insulin and type – II is the lack of insulin or insulin resistance. The type – II can be managed by the diet controls whereas type – I highly requires insulin management.
Australian scientists have demonstrated a new way to restore insulin production in pancreatic cells, using a drug that’s already approved for use in humans. The study could mark a major breakthrough towards new treatments for diabetes.
The pancreatic beta cells that produce the hormone insulin are responsible for controlling blood glucose levels. However, these cells start to disappear in people with type 1 diabetes, leaving them with little to no insulin production and a lifetime need for extra insulin injections to control their condition. Researchers from Monash University have discovered a novel strategy for resuming pancreatic insulin production in a recent study. The scientists found that GSK126, a pharmacological molecule, may stimulate pancreatic stem cells from donors with type 1 diabetes to start producing insulin in laboratory trials.
It s interesting to note that although these progenitor cells ordinarily do not make insulin, the medication allowed them to functionally replace the beta cells that had stopped functioning. The use of daily shots of insulin for diabetics may theoretically be replaced by a single course of this kind of medication over a few days.
The group claims that there are a few benefits of the new prospective treatment over existing approaches that are now in use or being developed. Although effective, pancreas transplants are susceptible to rejection and other issues such a lack of organ donors. Although findings in mice have been encouraging, other teams have transformed skin cells into stem cells and used those to make new beta cells. To prevent rejection, immune-suppressing medications must be administered.
The new therapy wouldn't require surgery and would start working considerably more quickly, in a matter of days. The fact that GSK126 is already recognized as a cancer treatment by the FDA in the US and other countries may be the biggest benefit, though. Clinical trials have previously evaluated its safety profile, which may make future obstacles to using it to treat diabetes less significant.
However, the experts stress that it is still extremely early in the process. There is still much work to be done because these trials were performed on cells in vitro rather than on animals yet. It is still a fascinating new potential tool, though.
Dr. Keith Al-Hasani, a co-lead author of the study, said, "There are many concerns to be handled before you get to patients". More effort is needed to identify the characteristics of these cells and create isolation and expansion techniques. I would assume that counselling is a long way off. However, this is a significant step toward developing a long-lasting remedy that might work for all forms of diabetes.
The research was published in the journal Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy.
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