Project 446707

Diabetes is a debilitating disorder of high blood sugar that afflicts millions of Canadians. People with type 1 diabetes lack the cells that release the hormone insulin, so multiple daily insulin injections remain the conventional way to control blood sugar levels and survive. Scientists at the University of Alberta made breakthrough improvements to the protocol for transplanting clusters of insulin-producing cells, called 'islets'. The "Edmonton Protocol" procedure is quick and works remarkably well, such that many transplant recipients are able to reduce or even eliminate insulin injections. Unfortunately, the only current source of islets for transplant is recently deceased donors and only a tiny fraction of those in need can receive the procedure. Over the past several years, there have been remarkable breakthroughs in unraveling the process by which islet cells develop naturally in the body. As a result, it is now possible to replicate many steps of this process in the laboratory with cultured stem cells, culminating in insulin producing cells. Exciting clinical trials are now underway in which islet precursor cells generated from cultured stem cells are loaded into thin devices and implanted under the skin. While initial assessments in patients are encouraging, insulin production from the cell containing devices is currently inadequate to reverse diabetes. Our goal is to utilize our broad expertise and a new model of human islet development to significantly improve upon the manufacturing of the islet cells to obtain more robust insulin delivery. To achieve this, we have assembled a diverse team of leading experts from across Canada who will focus their complementary skills towards generating an optimized process to mass produce stem cell derived islet cells that will form the basis for new clinical trials in patients with type 1 diabetes, and ultimately generate an effective therapy that will free Canadians from insulin injections.