Research

When you picture the future of type 1 diabetes treatment, what comes to mind? For many, they see high tech devices capable of reading blood glucose levels and adjusting insulin and glucagon rates to keep sugars stable. Others see stem…

When you were diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, you were probably told that a cure was “just around the corner.” And that “corner” likely came and went years or decades ago. While a true cure isn’t exactly just a few…

Heart disease kills more people in the developed world than any other condition. In America, about 1 in 5 women will die of heart disease while men succumb to the disease at a rate of about 1 in 4. Despite…

A team of medical researchers and several Nobel Prize winners from Betalin Therapeutics in Jerusalem has created a “bio-artificial pancreas” made from — wait for it — pig lung tissue and beta-cells.  How it works The “biological pancreas” is implanted…

Many in the Type 1 Diabetes community want to work for a cure, but philanthropy is the way most of us can help fund new treatments and cure research. Some charity dollars go further than others, and donors want to…

Neovacs — www.neovacs.fr — is a French biotech company focused on the development of Kinoids®, therapeutic vaccines for the treatment of autoimmune, inflammatory diseases, allergies, and cancer.  They presented pre-clinical results for T1D its therapeutic vaccine, IFNα Kinoid, during an…

We corresponded with Jingqiang Wang and Professor Zhen Gu of UCLA Engineering about their research on glucose-responsive insulin analogs (ref). The goal of their research is a simple-to-administer system that delivers insulin in a blood glucose-dependent manner. Q1: Is subcutaneous…

We spoke with Kristen Nadeau, MD, MS, (bio) Professor of Pediatrics and Research Director, Pediatric Endocrinology at the University of Colorado SOM about a study that was just published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. Context “Type 1…

We spoke with Robert Geho, CEO of Diasome Pharmaceuticals, Inc. — www.diasome.com — about its nanotechnology additive that delivers insulin to the liver where it can substantially improve T1D glucose control. Normal vs Injected Insulin In normal human physiology, the…

Today, the JDRF announced the appointment of Aaron J. Kowalski, Ph.D., as the nonprofit’s President and Chief Executive Officer. A 15-year veteran of JDRF and the first person living with T1D to lead the research organization, Dr. Kowalski has a…

We spoke with Klearchos Papas, PhD about his oxygen generator-based islet ‘tea bag’ transplant device for which the JDRF just funded a pre-clinical study (release). Dr. Papas (bio) is a professor in the Departments of Surgery, Medical Imaging, and the…

We spoke with Michał Wszoła MD, PhD about the 3D Bio-Printed Bionic Pancreas work being done with his team and Bionic Consortium in Poland. See www.fundacjabirn.pl Problem being Addressed “Pancreatic or pancreatic islet transplantation is the only method to cure…

We spoke with Camillo Ricordi, MD, Director of the Diabetes Research Institute (DRI) about the Poseidon Trial that is actively recruiting participants. Criteria for Participation DRI is seeking 56 people – 28 adults, and 28 children – to participate in…

We spoke with Ajit Shah, PhD and Peter Thompson, PhD about their research which has just been published in Cell Metabolism. This UC San Francisco study of human and mouse pancreatic tissue suggests a new origin story for type 1…

The Critical Path Institute (C-Path) is a catalyst in the development of new approaches including biomarkers and modeling and analysis tools to support clinical trial design and clinical outcome assessments. C-Path forms and leads consortiums that include drug developers, academics,…

We spoke with Denise Faustman, MD, Ph.D., Director of Immunobiology Massachusetts General Hospital, and Associate Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical School.  The following is a summary of the research that she and her team are working on. Early Islet Trials I…

We spoke with Pieter Rottiers, Ph.D., CEO of ActoBio Therapeutics. Genetic testing, combined with existing NIH TrialNet procedures, has shown very positive results in predicting T1D (see article). Intervention at the earliest possible time is expected to improve outcomes for…

Sernova is a regenerative medicine company located in London, Ontario. The corporation is led by President and CEO Dr. Philip M. Toleikis (bio) who has a strong background in implantable medical devices from twenty years in leadership roles including Angiotech…

We spoke with Anthony Coyle, Ph.D., Co-founder and CEO of Pandion Therapeutics which is located in Cambridge Massachusetts.  This interview was stimulated by the JDRF announcement of their investment in Pandion. Paradigm Change Pandion is trying to shift the paradigm for the treatment…

INTRODUCTION Virus infections have long been considered as a possible cause of type 1 diabetes. One virus group, enteroviruses (EVs), has been studied extensively, and clinical development of a vaccine against T1D-associated EV types has started. “Epidemiological and experimental studies…