PNAS: Experimental therapy can effectively treat type I diabetes

According to a series of studies led by health scientists at the University of Utah, experimental treatments can essentially reverse type 1 diabetes in certain types of laboratory mice.

The researchers said that a single dose of human antibodies to animals can inhibit the effects of glucagon, a hormone involved in glucose regulation, which can stimulate significant transformation of the pancreas, resulting in a nearly 7-fold increase in the amount of insulin cells.

"These animals went from needing insulin injections to no longer needing diabetes treatment.

However, the researchers warned that they are still far away from this goal.

The research was published in "PNAS".

Glucagon and insulin are produced by a group of cells in the pancreas called Langerhans islets.

Study co-author and assistant professor, Dr.

To determine whether this is possible, Holland, Dean and colleagues induced diabetes in mice, which triggered the death of insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas.

The researchers dig deeper and tracked the alpha cells that produce glucagon using fluorescent protein markers that emit red light.

Next, the scientists turned their attention to non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice.

Looking to the future, researchers began to study how alpha (glucagon) cells are transformed into insulin-producing cells and avoid being destroyed by the immune system.

Information source: Experimental treatment appears to subdue type 1 diabetes in laboratory mice

Original source: May-Yun Wang el al.