Singapore researchers have developed pure insulin-producing cells from mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs). The resulting cells have the same sub-cellular structures as the insulin-producing cells naturally found in the pancreas, were highly effective in treating diabetes in the mouse model.

Experiments by Dr Lim and Dr Li's group showed that when transplanted into diabetic mice with high blood glucose levels, the pure insulin-producing cells would cause the blood glucose levels of the animals to decrease.
In addition, it was discovered that none of the diabetic mice involved in the transplants developed teratoma, a type of tumour often associated with ESCs, which could complicate their use in therapeutic treatment. Furthermore, the pure insulin-producing cells managed to retain their insulin-production and glucose-sensing capacity over time.

These findings, published in two papers in the July 31 and August 8 online version of the journal stem cell Research, provide proof of principle that the same strategy could be applied to human ESCs to obtain similar pure insulin-producing cells.