The islets of Langerhans is a region of the pancreas that contains endocrine or hormone-producing cells. Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body's immune system has attacked and destroyed the beta cells of the pancreas and it is no longer able to make insulin.
Insulin is a hormone produced in the pancreas by the islets of Langerhans which regulates the amount of glucose in the blood
The Department of Biotechnology at Seoul Women's University in Korea, found that human insulin alone produced from eyelid-derived stem cells following differentiation into insulin-secreting cells and transplantation could normalize type I diabetes in mice.
In type 1 diabetes, the body's immune system destroys the cells that release insulin, eventually eliminating insulin production from the body.
Breastfeeding has been suggested to reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus, the metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease
Having been breastfed for at least 2 months may lower the risk of diabetes in children, states the Department of Family Medicine at Brown Medical School in Pawtucket, RI. Type 1 diabetes is less common in people who were breastfed and in those who first ate solid foods at later ages, where type 2 diabetes is common when obesity tends to run in families, and families tend to have similar eating and exercise habits. Glucose levels for both types of diabetes are very similar before and after meals.
A person who has type 1 diabetes must take insulin daily to live
The immune system protects people from infection by identifying and destroying bacteria, viruses, and other potentially harmful foreign substances. A condition called "insulin resistance," begins with type 2 diabetes, in which the body has trouble using insulin effectively. Over time, insulin production declines as well, so many people with type 2 diabetes eventually need to take insulin.
The Beta Cell Group, Division of Reproduction and Endocrinology at King's College in London, says that because diabetes is caused by the loss of a single cell type it is amenable to treatment by cell replacement therapy. They believe that islet transplantation can cure people with Type 1 diabetes. Islets are cells found in clusters throughout the pancreas. They are made up of several types of cells. One of these is beta cells, which make insulin, states the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
The problem, however, is the severely limited availability of donor islets
Islets can be gathered from xenografts, tissue stem cells and embryonic stem cells. Xenografts are surgical grafts of tissue from one species to an unlike species, like baboon to human.
So, whether the stem cells are collected from eyelids or islets, the development of stem cell insulin has begun. Whether stem cells are used for diabetics or as a natural food supplement, stem cells are beneficial in our lives.
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