It has been revealed the fact that we have a breakthrough in diabetes treatment. Check out the latest reports about this below.
FDA-approved drugs have mind-blowing results
A new study has shown progress towards reducing the need for round-the-clock insulin injections to manage diabetes.
The researchers were able to regenerate insulin-producing cells in the pancreas by getting pancreatic ductal progenitor cells to develop and mimic the function of β-cells that are usually ineffective or missing in people with type 1 diabetes.
The study was conducted by a team at the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute in Australia who investigated the use of drugs already approved by the FDA to target the EZH2 enzyme in human tissue.
The EZH2 enzyme controls cell development, providing an important biological check on growth. By using two small molecule inhibitors called GSK126 and Tazemetostat, which are already approved for use in cancer treatments, the researchers were able to remove some of the brakes imposed by EZH2, allowing the progenitor ductal cells to develop functions similar to those of β-cells.
“Targeting EZH2 is fundamental to β-cell regenerative potential,” write the researchers in their published paper.
“Reprogrammed pancreatic ductal cells exhibit insulin production and secretion in response to a physiological glucose challenge ex vivo.”
Previous research has suggested that cells responsible for the lining of the duct, which also help control stomach acidity, could be transformed into something similar to β-cells under the right conditions.
And now, we have a good understanding of how to achieve it.
The new cells are capable of sensing glucose levels and adjusting insulin production accordingly, just like β-cells.
This is crucial in type 1 diabetes, which is the main focus of the study, as the body’s immune system mistakenly destroys the original β-cells, which leads to the need for regular insulin injections to manage blood glucose levels.
The team carried out tests using tissue samples from three individuals, two of whom had type 1 diabetes at the ages of 7 and 61, and one aged 56 without diabetes.
The results showed the same reaction in all three generations, suggesting that the method can be effective across age groups. Another positive outcome is that regular insulin production was restored after just 48 hours of stimulation.
Check out more details about this in the original article.
