【Current status of diabetes treatment and potential of cell treatment】
The number of patients with diabetes is increasing rapidly in Japan reflecting recent social and lifestyle changes. Diabetes causes several complications such as retinopathy, nephropathy and neuropathy; last-stage diabetic patients can lose their vision or require dialysis treatment.
Studies on stem cell treatment for diabetes are in progress and it has been reported that patients who received hematopoietic stem cell treatment no longer required insulin administration and showed improvement of their diabetic complications.
【Institutes conducting animal experiments or clinical trials】
◆ Kyoto University ◆ Sapporo Medical University ◆ Juntendo University
◆ Institute for Frontier Medical Sciences, Kyoto University
◆ National Medical Center (Hungary)
【Case : Kyoto University】
It has been reported that transplantation of medullary thymic epithelial stem cells in mouse model of autoimmune diseases contributed to lifelong expression of normal medullary epithelial cells and suppressed the autoimmune phenotypes. The relationship between thymus involution and activity of medullary thymic epithelial stem cells has also been suggested.
It is greatly expected to develop treatments for autoimmune diseases such as type I diabetes and rheumatism.
【Case : National Medical Center (Hungary)】
It has been confirmed that concomitant administration of bone marrow cells and mesenchymal stem cells induced pancreatic β-cell regeneration in mouse model of type 1 diabetes.