Stem cell research leads race for diabetes cure
Key points
- Australian scientists are using controversial stem cells for world-leading research into a cure for type 1 Diabetes.
- Researchers at Monash Institute of Reproduction and Development are using the technique, under threat from the federal government, to develop healthy pancreatic cells.
- Under the project, using mouse and human embryonic stem cells, the pancreatic cells could then be used to replace faulty insulin-producing cells.
- Project leader, Dr Martin Pera, said using stem cells was a pioneering approach to curing the condition.
Australian scientists are using controversial stem cells for world-leading research into a cure for type 1 Diabetes.
Researchers at Monash Institute of Reproduction and Development are using the technique, under threat from the federal government, to develop healthy pancreatic cells.
Under the project, using mouse and human embryonic stem cells, the pancreatic cells could then be used to replace faulty insulin-producing cells.
Project leader, Dr Martin Pera, said using stem cells was a pioneering approach to curing the condition.
The project is in its early days, being launched just two months ago at the institute that is spearheading the campaign for stem cell research," he said.
"At this stage it's early days and we can't say that we are going to cure diabetes on such and such a day.
"But I think it's widely recognised that it has great potential."
Dr Pera said the research could be adversely affected if the federal government decided to ban the use of spare IVF human embryos for research, as it depended on the availability of the cells.
Dr Pera is among a number of Australian scientists who will outline their world-leading research into cures for diabetes at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation symposium in Melbourne tonight.
Other speakers in Professor Len Harrison of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute at the University of Melbourne.
AAP News Online
Written and revised by
Gerald Hurowitz, M.D.
Our doctors write and review articles for accuracy and keep them up to date.
health.am provides general information, not medical advice. Always consult a qualified health professional about your own health.
Explore health topics
More in this topic
Diabetes & Hormones →
NewsDiabetes Advance: Gut Cells Changed Into Insulin Producers
Scientists have converted human gut cells into insulin producers by turning off a single gene in an experiment that suggests a novel way forward in treating diabetes. Using a miniature model of the human intestine, only…
4 July 2014
NewsGenetic risk for type 1 diabetes driven by faulty cell recycling
Researchers, tackling a modern challenge of diabetes research, have identified a gene believed to disrupt the ability of beta cells to produce insulin resulting in type 1 diabetes. The loss of beta cell function may be…
21 June 2014
NewsResearchers motivate diabetics to adopt healthy lifestyle
By means of so-called health coaching, researchers at the University of Copenhagen have helped a large group of diabetics to markedly improve their oral health. The patients assume responsibility for their own bodies…
27 January 2014
