Researchers transplant DNA-edited skin to reverse diabetes in mice
Researchers from Chicago have developed a new technique to reverse the symptoms of diabetes in mice. By removing the skin cells, altering the DNA and then transplanting them back into diabetic mice, scientists were able to alleviate their symptoms.
Type II diabetes is a long-term condition that develops when the pancreatic cells stop responding to the hormone insulin. Normally, sugar levels in the blood are carefully controlled, however, when they are consistently high this can lead to amputation, blindness and death. The risk of diabetes increases severely in overweight individuals. This is especially worrying as the developed world is currently facing an obesity epidemic, and rates of diabetes are rapidly increasing (the number of diagnosed individuals rose by 65% in the decade 2005–2015).
Skin grafts, which involve the transplantation of skin from another person, animal or area of the patient’s body, have been used as a method of healing burn wounds for decades. The new technique being trialled in mice is the first to allow the production of a protective molecule in large quantities, which can then be passed into the blood naturally.
The GLP1 molecule is naturally occurring within the body, however, is destroyed quickly. Some treatments for diabetes already focus on this molecule, trying to extend its lifespan or increasing its activity. Using CRISPR gene editing (which we have talked about before), Xiaoyang Wu and his team have produced skin cells which can make GLP1 on demand. These cells were transplanted onto recipient mice, which led to a reduction in symptoms.
Transplants of this type could save patients from a lifetime of drugs, as well as saving millions in healthcare expenditure. Not only does this procedure not require an invasive operation, but the accessibility of the skin, which can then be easily monitored, means that if problems arise these can be quickly dealt with. There is often a fear when working with stem cell therapies (which this does count as) that the transplanted cells could become cancerous. The ability to carefully observe these cells for malformations helps to reduce this risk dramatically.
While this has not yet been trialled on humans, I suspect it will not be particularly long. The idea of secreting molecules from transplanted skin offers hope to several conditions, in a potentially quick and safe manner. The main hurdles facing this treatment will be the availability of skin for transplantation and the efficiency at which this procedure can be transferred from mice to human cells. Also, it will be important to keep an eye on the long-term effects of increased GLP1, and look into how the production of GLP1 may be best controlled.
Originally published at sciencewithalexblog.wordpress.com on August 8, 2017.
