Mesenchymal stem cells

In order to stop the immune attack that destroys the body's own insulin-producing cells in type 1 diabetes, therapy with a type of connective tissue stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells, derived from the umbilical cord and produced as the cell therapy drug Protrans is being tested.

In phase I/II studies in adults newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, the cell therapy has been shown to be safe and capable of halting the loss of insulin-producing cells in the first few years after diagnosis.

An ongoing trial is now investigating the safety and ability to stop the immune attack on insulin-producing cells also in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes. The cells are given as an intravenous infusion. It is hoped that it will be possible to completely reverse the course of the disease and ultimately find a cure for type 1 diabetes.