Type 1 diabetes
Type 1 diabetes
Type 1 diabetes occurs when the pancreas is unable to make enough insulin. Insulin is a hormone that acts as a key to let glucose from the food we eat pass from the blood stream into the cells to provide energy.
What causes the condition?
The exact cause of type 1 diabetes is unknown. It is thought that a viral infection, makes triggers the immune system to destroy the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas in people who have a genetic history of diabetes. . At this stage nothing can be done to prevent or cure type 1 diabetes.
Which cells stop working properly?
Insulin is a hormone produced in the pancreas by special cells, called beta cells. The pancreas is behind the stomach. Insulin is needed to move blood sugar (glucose) into cells. There, it is stored and later used for energy. In type 1 diabetes, beta cells produce little or no insulin.
What problems result?
Untreated diabetes can severely damage many systems, organs and tissues of the body. In result, problems include:
Kidney damage
Increased likelihood of infections such as thrush and also more serious infections
Damage to the eyes
Poor blood circulation in the legs and feet, potentially leading to lower limp amputation
Damage to the nerves of the feet
Much higher risk of heart disease and stroke
Sexual impotence
How stem cells might be useful in treating the problem
It is possible to treat type 1 diabetes by transplanting islet cells or even a whole pancreas into the patient from a donor. One of the biggest problems faced by islet transplantation is the lack of donors. Instead of using donor cells, new beta cells could be grown from stem cells and used in replacement therapy. There are several different ideas about where to get these stem cells and how they could be used:
Embryonic stem cells
Human embryonic stem (ES) cells could be differentiated into immature beta cells for transplantion into a diabetes patient, where it is hoped the cells would mature and
Type 1 diabetes occurs when the pancreas is unable to make enough insulin. Insulin is a hormone that acts as a key to let glucose from the food we eat pass from the blood stream into the cells to provide energy.
What causes the condition?
The exact cause of type 1 diabetes is unknown. It is thought that a viral infection, makes triggers the immune system to destroy the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas in people who have a genetic history of diabetes. . At this stage nothing can be done to prevent or cure type 1 diabetes.
Which cells stop working properly?
Insulin is a hormone produced in the pancreas by special cells, called beta cells. The pancreas is behind the stomach. Insulin is needed to move blood sugar (glucose) into cells. There, it is stored and later used for energy. In type 1 diabetes, beta cells produce little or no insulin.
What problems result?
Untreated diabetes can severely damage many systems, organs and tissues of the body. In result, problems include:
Kidney damage
Increased likelihood of infections such as thrush and also more serious infections
Damage to the eyes
Poor blood circulation in the legs and feet, potentially leading to lower limp amputation
Damage to the nerves of the feet
Much higher risk of heart disease and stroke
Sexual impotence
How stem cells might be useful in treating the problem
It is possible to treat type 1 diabetes by transplanting islet cells or even a whole pancreas into the patient from a donor. One of the biggest problems faced by islet transplantation is the lack of donors. Instead of using donor cells, new beta cells could be grown from stem cells and used in replacement therapy. There are several different ideas about where to get these stem cells and how they could be used:
Embryonic stem cells
Human embryonic stem (ES) cells could be differentiated into immature beta cells for transplantion into a diabetes patient, where it is hoped the cells would mature and