Potential anti-rejection drug for insulin cell transplantation
MEDIA RELEASE: 01 Mar 2011
Australian scientists have developed a reagent with the potential to prevent rejection of transplanted insulin-producing cells into people with Type 1 diabetes – one of the most promising immunology developments in recent years.
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Given to diabetic mice for two weeks, starting the day before islet transplantation, the reagent allowed mice to accept the donor cells as their own – with no need for immunosuppressive drugs, and no Type 1 diabetes. Permanently.
The reagent is a cloned a cell surface receptor that mops up a harmful molecule known as IL-21, which appears to cause Type 1 diabetes. The cloned receptors compete with similar receptors on the body’s own killer immune cells, preventing them from destroying the transplant.
The reagent is a cloned a cell surface receptor that mops up a harmful molecule known as IL-21, which appears to cause Type 1 diabetes. The cloned receptors compete with similar receptors on the body’s own killer immune cells, preventing them from destroying the transplant.
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“In this study, we’ve shown definitively that if the body’s killer T cells don’t get IL-21, they don’t reject the islet tissue. ”
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Dr Dorota Pawlak, Head of Research Development at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, said that the ability to replace insulin producing cells safely in people with Type 1 diabetes without the need for immune suppression would be a revolution for diabetes research. “This finding represents progress and it is important to acknowledge and honour advances that take us closer to finding a cure for Type 1 diabetes.”
Department of Immunology, Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Darlinghurst, New South Wales, Australia
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