Best Source of Insulin-producing Islets for Diabetes Treatment: Living Donors

Filed in archive Developments , Notable , Research , Treatment on November 27, 2007

If you do not know already, islet cells - clusters of insulin-producing pancreatic cells - even from pigs, have been successfully improved the insulin levels of insulin-dependent diabetics (type 1 diabetes).




Recent research reported success in transplantation of insulin-producing islet cells from pigs to human. There are even facilities that have raised or are raising healthy, disease-free pigs to meet the high demand on islet cells.

Now, according to a new study in Clinical Transplantation, obtaining islet cells (clusters of pancreatic cells that create insulin) from living donors may be the Best solution to the shortage of islets available for transplantation.

According to study author Dr. Kwang-Won Kim:

"Islet cell transplantation is the only known cure for insulin-dependent diabetes, but there are simply not enough deceased donors available to meet the demand for islet cells. In fact, we sometimes require islet cells from two deceased donors to gather enough cells to treat one patient.

Unfortunately, obtaining islet cells from living donors is not a risk-free procedure; donors may become susceptible to developing diabetes themselves.

Obviously, more research is needed to determine the risk to donors and ensure their safety, but if a low-risk donation strategy could be established, living donors could dramatically improve the supply of islet cells for transplant"

But then, I think experts will be able to make a way to prevent living donors of islet cells from becoming susceptible to developing diabetes. That, or put up more and more pigs as source of islet cells.

Find more details from Science Daily.

[Photo Credit: joslin.org]