Transplanted Pig Cell Islets: A Solution For Diabetes Sufferers? USA

Main Category: Diabetes
Article Date: 18 Jan 2008 - 2:00 PST

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At present, there are over eleven million diabetes sufferers in the United States; the Center for Disease Control estimates that another six million cases go undiagnosed. A recent series of New York Times articles suggested that diabetes and diabetes-related illnesses account for the nation's number one cause of emergency room visits.

In Type 1 diabetes the immune system attacks and destroys insulin-producing "islet" cells located in the pancreas. Since islet cells cannot repair or reproduce themselves, researchers have been actively pursuing cell transplantation for diabetes.

"Aside from the overwhelming stress and limitations associated with a daily regimen of insulin injections and blood glucose monitoring, Type 1 and 2 diabetes can lead to heart disease, kidney failure, blindness, limb amputations, and other health problems," says Michael J. Andrews, CEO of San Diego, CA-based MicroIslet, Inc. "We're looking to change that."

MicroIslet is engaged in the research, development, and commercialization of patented technologies in the field of transplantation therapy for patients with insulin-dependent diabetes. While the availability of human islet cells is limited by the supply of human donor tissue, xenotransplantation, Microislet's process of transplanting organs from one species to another, could provide an essentially unlimited supply of islet cells for transplantation.

"Pigs, whose insulin differs from the human version by just a single amino acid, are a well-established source for human therapeutics," says Andrews. "Historically, most of the insulin used to treat humans was derived from pigs."

To protect transplanted cells from rejection by the patient's immune system, MicroIslet has developed a unique method of microencapsulation. The process, which involves the surrounding of islet cells with a highly biocompatible biopolymer derived from seaweed, forms an outer covering around the islets, reducing the host's resistance to the transplanted material.

MicroIslet believes its porcine xenotransplantation and proprietary technology may overcome many of the obstacles that have plagued islet cell transplantation. Andrews believes that a minimally invasive procedure consisting of the implantation of microencapsulated porcine islets into the abdominal cavity may provide physiologic and self-regulating blood glucose control. Says Andrews: "This could ultimately enable diabetics to become free of insulin injections and the toxic immunosuppressive drug regimens that traditionally accompany transplants."

http://www.microislet.com