Diabetes: Cell Transplantation Could Be A Solution For Diabetes
A new cell transplantation technique is being used by
researchers in order to repair the cells that produce insulin in
patients with type 1 diabetes. The study, presented this week at
the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America,
shows that the procedure is minimally invasive and with few
complications. One of the authors of the study explains that
they used "ultrasound guidance to inject donor cells into the
portal vein of diabetic patients, which is accessed through the
skin. This is a safe method of cell transplantation that could
potentially become a same-day procedure". The experts explain
that the body does not produce insulin in type 1 diabetes, which
results from the destruction of insulin-producing islet beta
cells in the pancreas. Insulin is the basic fuel that all cells
need to metabolize sugar. The study shows that the used
technique is minimally invasive, since donor islet cells are
injected into diabetic patients so that the new healthy islet
cells can restore insulin production, which is essential to stop
disease advancement. According to the study, fifteen islet cell
transplantations were carried out to 13 patients with poorly
controlled type 1 diabetes, two patients received two procedures
to achieve correct needle placement. The expert in chief told
that they used a steroid-free protocol in order to suppress the
immune system, so that the body accepted the transplanted cells.
"We also developed a 'sandwich technique' to close the access
site through the skin, where the islet cells are injected. The
sandwich technique is so-called because of the layered
applications of gelfoam and coil used to close the access site".
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