Can stem cells be 'trained' to produce insulin?

University of Alberta researchers are the first in the world to transform embryonic stem cells into insulin-producing cells, an achievement that could one day lead to an endless source of islet cells for Type 1 diabetics.

In collaboration with Geron, a California-based biopharmaceutical company, Dr. Gregory Korbutt successfully differentiated human embryonic stem cells - immature cells that haven't yet become a particular kind of cell - into insulin-producers resembling the islet cells in the pancreas. These cells produce the insulin needed for the body to digest sugar, but aren't functional in Type 1 diabetics, who must take synthetic insulin to manage blood sugar levels.

This new discovery could lead to an unlimited source of insulin-producing cells, which could be implanted in diabetic patients. Korbutt was a member of the team that pioneered the world-renowned, U of A-developed Edmonton Protocol method, eliminating insulin dependency for years at a time.

Korbutt, the study's lead author, said this new research is promising, but added it is still preliminary.

"When people hear 'stem cells' they sometimes think a cure is around the corner," said Korbutt.

This isn't the case, he cautioned, as less than five per cent of the stem cells in the study were successfully 'taught' to act like islet cells. "The number of cells we have is not therapeutically applicable," he said.

"The other problem is that these cells are still quite immature. They may have insulin in them, but they're not working or functioning like a normal adult insulin-secreting cell, so we have to make that better."

While the new findings are exciting, clinical development will require more tests.

"It's a step - we have to make small steps to get to that point."

The next step is to implant the insulin-producing stem cells into diabetic mice, to see if their need for insulin is eliminated.

Stem cell research is "still in its infancy," and presents many challenges, said Korbutt. Finding the best ways to change a stem cell into a particular kind of cell is extremely difficult. "In reality, it's not as easy as we think it should be," he said.

"The question is, 'How do you teach those embryonic stem cells to become an insulin-producing cell, and not a heart cell or a nerve cell?' So, you have to derive strategies that sort of mimic development, but the problem is, as with most developmental biology, we don't know all of the mechanisms that induce a cell to differentiate into a certain pathway."

The study will be published in the August issue of Stem Cells.