Diabetes

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Diabetes

Causes of Diabetes

Diabetes is a metabolic disease characterized by chronic hyperglycemia due to malfunctioning of the body's blood sugar regulation system.
It is classified into type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

  • Type 1 Diabetes Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease caused by factors such as enhanced immune responses due to viral infections, decreased immune regulatory ability, and genetic predisposition, where the immune system attacks the body's pancreatic beta cells.
  • Type 2 Diabetes Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body becomes less sensitive to insulin or when pancreatic beta cell function deteriorates, often due to obesity, metabolic syndrome, lack of physical activity, poor dietary habits, or genetic factors.
    In addition to these reasons, diabetes can also be caused by hormonal imbalances, side effects of medications, or aging.

Stem Cell Therapy for Diabetes

The goal of stem cell therapy for diabetes is to restore the ability to regulate blood sugar by repairing or replacing damaged pancreatic beta cells and modulating autoimmune responses.

  • Stem cells differentiate into pancreatic beta cells, replacing damaged pancreatic beta cells.
  • Various factors secreted by stem cells protect pancreatic beta cells and promote the regeneration of damaged pancreatic beta cells.
  • Stem cells suppress autoimmune responses, protecting transplanted cells and creating an immune-suppressive environment.

bBHC's Research
on Diabetes Treatment

  • KHC cells differentiate into pancreatic beta cells
    Pancreatic Beta Cells Derived from KHCs
    Through their differentiation ability, KHCs can replace and regenerate damaged pancreatic beta cells, providing a fundamental treatment for diabetes.
  • Type 1 Diabetes Type 1 diabetes occurs when autoimmune responses damage pancreatic beta cells.
    KHCs differentiate into pancreatic beta cells in the body and replace the damaged cells to treat diabetes.
    Effectiveness of KHCs in Type 1 Diabetes
    KHCs regenerate and replace damaged pancreatic beta cells in the body.
    As a result, blood glucose levels decreased by approximately 51% following KHC transplantation.
    Interestingly, the transplantation of undifferentiated KHCs was more effective at lowering blood glucose levels than the transplantation of KHC-derived pancreatic beta cells. It suggests that factors secreted by KHCs may have played an additional role in reducing blood glucose levels.     To prevent the recurrence of type 1 diabetes, immune cells must be blocked from attacking pancreatic beta cells.
    To achieve this, we encapsulated KHCs and KHC-derived beta cells in a cell pouch and transplanted them into a type 1 diabetes model mouse.
    Cell Pouch (Left) and Internal Schematic (Right)
    Treatment of Type 1 Diabetes Using the Cell Pouch
    When KHCs and KHC-derived pancreatic beta cells were encapsulated in a cell pouch and transplanted subcutaneously into type 1 diabetes model mice, blood glucose levels decreased by approximately 70%, and this effect persisted for about one year. In contrast, untreated type 1 diabetes model mice died approximately five months later. These results demonstrate that the cell pouch containing KHCs and KHC-derived beta cells can successfully replace pancreatic function.
  • Type 2 Diabetes Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body becomes less insulin-sensitive or pancreatic beta cell function deteriorates.
    Unlike type 1 diabetes, we transplanted KHC-derived pancreatic beta cells into type 2 diabetes model mice.
    KHC 유래 췌장 베타세포를 이용한 제2형 당뇨병의 치료 Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Using KHC-Derived Pancreatic Beta Cells
    One month after transplanting KHC-derived pancreatic beta cells into type 2 diabetes model mice, blood glucose levels were approximately 54% of pre-transplant levels. This result indicates that the damaged pancreatic beta cells in these mice were successfully replaced by KHC-derived pancreatic beta cells.