Research published in Scientific translational medicine reveals that a new drug therapy can dramatically increase insulin-producing cells by 700% in just three months, effectively reversing their disease.
This revolutionary discovery offers new hope of a potential cure for millions of people with diabetes.
In a healthy pancreas, beta cells play a crucial role in regulating blood sugar levels by producing insulin. However, in people with diabetes, these cells are damaged or dysfunctional, resulting in insufficient insulin production.
Therefore, people with diabetes need regular insulin injections to manage their blood sugar levels and keep them under control.
There is growing research interest in restoring beta cell function. Some methods involve using stem cells to generate new beta cells, which are then transplanted into patients, a strategy described as a “potential functional cure for diabetes.”
Scientists at Mount Sinai and City of Hope have made a significant breakthrough. Unlike previous studies that required growing new beta cells in the lab before transplanting them, this new study was able to grow insulin-producing cells directly in the body within months.
The therapy combines two drugs: harmine, a natural compound from certain plants that inhibits the DYRK1A enzyme in beta cells, and a GLP1 receptor agonist, a class of diabetes drugs that includes Ozempic, known for its weight-loss effects.
This therapy was tested in mouse models of type 1 and type 2 diabetes. The researchers implanted a small number of human beta cells into the mice and treated them with harmine and GLP1 receptor agonists.
The result was a 700% increase in beta cells within three months, with signs of diabetes reversing and remaining improved even a month after stopping treatment.
Dr. Adolfo García-Ocaña, corresponding author of the study, noted that this is the first time that drug treatment has been shown to increase the number of adult human beta cells in vivo.
He stressed that this research brings hope for future regenerative therapies that could potentially treat millions of diabetic patients.
“We have made a breakthrough discovery by successfully developing a drug treatment that increases the number of adult beta cells in the human body. This advance offers new hope for regenerative therapies that could potentially treat the millions of people with diabetes worldwide,” he said.
Although the results are promising, the animal nature of the study means that further research is needed before it can be applied clinically to humans.
Harmine recently completed a Phase 1 clinical trial of its own to test its safety and tolerability in humans, and other DYRK1A inhibitors are planned for human trials next year.
In particular, the researchers want to combine beta cell regenerating drugs with immune system modulators. This could help overcome the major challenge of the immune system attacking the newly produced beta cells.
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First posted on: 16-07-2024 at 02:49 IST