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| health > story page |         |
New research could lead to cure for juvenile diabetes
June 1, 1999 From Medical Correspondent Rhonda RowlandMIAMI (CNN) -- Researchers at the University of Miami successfully transplanted insulin-producing cells to six monkeys with diabetes, bringing them one step closer to a possible cure for humans. The cell transplants, taken from a donor pancreas, enabled the monkeys to stay off insulin shots for a year or more, the scientists said Tuesday. As part of the study, researchers tested a new drug known as anti-CD154, which appears to protect the insulin-producing cells, known as islet cells, from rejection. "We've found a novel drug that may be a key part to actually be able to do islet cell transplants without the need for long-term use of anti-rejection drugs," said Dr. Norma Kenyon of the Diabetes Research Institute at the University of Miami. The findings will soon be published in the medical journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "It's too early to say if our research will lead to a cure, and we don't want to raise false hopes," said Kenyon. "But it could be part of an eventual cure." Type 1 diabetes, also known as insulin-dependent and juvenile diabetes, is the most severe form of the disease and can lead to complications affecting almost every part of the body. Most patients develop it during childhood. Anti-rejection drugs often harmfulResearchers have been searching for ways to carry out islet cell transplants without the need for long-term anti-rejection drugs. "We don't want patients to trade insulin for these toxic drugs," said Dr. Hugh Auchincloss, director of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation Center for Islet Cell Transplantation at Harvard Medical School. "More than 300 islet cell transplants have been done in the last decade, but only a handful of patients have been able to stay off of insulin for a significant amount of time," he added. While Auchincloss is excited about the new research, he pointed out that a number of questions need to be answered. "For instance, can the islet cells survive long-term once the monkeys are taken off the new drug?" he asked. Since diabetes in monkeys is not the same as Type 1 diabetes in humans, medical experts are not sure how well anti-CD154 will work on humans. Researchers at the University of Miami hope to soon test the new drug on humans with insulin-dependent diabetes. RELATEDS AT  :
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