Media release
From: Springer NatureA new subcutaneous transplantation method for pancreatic islet cells can stabilize blood sugar levels in animal models of type 1 diabetes, reports a study in Nature Metabolism. These findings may have implications for improved treatments for this autoimmune disease.
Some patients with type 1 diabetes receive transplantation of pancreatic islet cells into the liver, but the treatment can result in complications including haemorrhage, thrombosis and graft rejection. Subcutaneous transplantation sites are of interest because they are easy to access and monitor, but the grafts often fail because the cells do not receive enough nutrients and oxygen.
Ali Naji, Divyansh Agarwal and colleagues circumvent this problem by encapsulating the islet cells in a novel collagen-based matrix. The matrix helps the cells survive after subcutaneous transplantation. When the procedure was tested in rodent models and a small number of non-human primates, it enabled the animals to maintain normal insulin and glucagon production.
Transplantable pancreatic islet cells are in short supply because the cells come from donor cadavers; therefore, the authors suggest that their method could be used to improve the viability of other transplant cell types. If, for example, stem-cell-derived beta cells could be treated in this way, they could provide a renewable source of insulin-secreting cells to replace those that are lost in people with type I diabetes.
The authors conclude that, although further research is needed, subcutaneous islet transplantation could provide a new treatment option for patients with type 1 diabetes.
