{"id":101295,"date":"2026-05-21T15:24:54","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T19:24:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/?post_type=cu_story&p=101295"},"modified":"2026-05-21T15:40:39","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T19:40:39","slug":"stem-cells-diabetes-treatment","status":"publish","type":"cu_story","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/story\/stem-cells-diabetes-treatment\/","title":{"rendered":"Stem Cells Have Potent Potential for Diabetes Treatment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n Stem Cells Have Potent Potential for Diabetes Treatment\n <\/h1>\n \n <\/header>\n <\/div>\n\n \n <\/path>\n <\/path>\n <\/svg>\n <\/div>\n\n \n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

Humans have around 30 trillion cells<\/a> in our adult bodies. Amazingly, each of these cells came from a handful of about 100 stem cells<\/a> in the earliest days of development. The ability of these embryonic stem cells to turn into any cell type makes them pluripotent \u2014 something that researchers are harnessing in science and medicine today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The use of human embryonic stem cells in research began in 1998<\/a>, when several human embryos were donated from couples undergoing in vitro fertilization. From these embryos, scientists generated a virtually unlimited supply of pluripotent cells. Almost 30 years later, these embryonic stem cell lines are still used in many research labs today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another milestone in stem cell research came in 2007, when two labs \u2014 led by Shinya Yamanaka<\/a> at the University of Kyoto<\/a> in Japan and by James Thomson<\/a> at the University of Wisconsin-Madison<\/a> in the United States \u2014 separately published papers on how they had reprogrammed mature cells (like skin cells) back to a stem cell-like pluripotent state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are known as induced pluripotent stem cells. Their main benefit is that they carry a person’s own DNA, enabling more personalized disease-modelling and therapies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How can stem cells be used for diabetes treatment?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In our research lab, we use embryonic stem cells to generate insulin-producing beta cells \u2014 the cell type that is destroyed by the immune system in people with Type 1 diabetes<\/a>. The loss of these insulin-producing beta cells leaves patients dependent on insulin injections to control blood sugar levels and prevent severe complications like blood vessel and nerve damage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Insulin therapy does not relieve the emotional load<\/a> of living with Type 1 diabetes. It also does not fully replace the dynamic function of the body’s own beta cells, so many people with Type 1 diabetes still experience long-term health problems<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To overcome this, researchers are making lab grown stem cell-derived beta cells<\/a> to try to restore the body’s ability to produce insulin. Recent clinical trials<\/a> have shown promising results of transplanting these cells into individuals with Type 1 diabetes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n