Findings may lead to improved insulin-secreting cells derived from stem cells

Diabetes researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have uncovered at least one reason insulin-secreting cells made from stem cells in the lab don’t work as well as natural cells. The discovery could help speed progress toward making insulin-secreting cells — called islet beta cells — more effective in the treatment of […]

Board grants faculty appointments, promotions, tenure

At the Washington University in St. Louis Board of Trustees meeting May 7, numerous faculty members were appointed or promoted with tenure or granted tenure, effective July 1 unless otherwise indicated. Promotion with tenure Megan Tierney Baldridge, MD, PhD, to associate professor of medicine at the School of Medicine; Trevor G. Gardner II to professor of […]

Tiny implant cures diabetes in mice without triggering immune response

A team of researchers led by diabetes specialists and biomedical engineers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Cornell University has demonstrated that, using a miniscule device, they can implant insulin-secreting cells into diabetic mice. Once implanted, the cells secrete insulin in response to blood sugar, reversing diabetes without requiring drugs to […]

Six teams selected for LEAP funding

The Skandalaris Center for Interdisciplinary Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Washington University in St. Louis recently announced six teams were selected for funding to prepare their projects for commercialization through the spring 2020 LEAP Gap Fund cycle. The LEAP Gap Fund is open to any person or team with potential or existing university intellectual property. Through the program, […]

Diabetes reversed in mice with genetically edited stem cells derived from patients

Using induced pluripotent stem cells produced from the skin of a patient with a rare, genetic form of insulin-dependent diabetes called Wolfram syndrome, researchers transformed the human stem cells into insulin-producing cells and used the gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9 to correct a genetic defect that had caused the syndrome. They then implanted the cells into lab mice […]

Diabetes in mice cured rapidly using human stem cell strategy

Researchers have converted human stem cells into insulin-producing cells and demonstrated in mice infused with such cells that blood sugar levels can be controlled and diabetes functionally cured for nine months. The findings, from researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, are published online Feb. 24 in the journal Nature Biotechnology. “These […]

New hope for stem cell approach to treating diabetes

Insulin-producing cells more responsive to fluctuating glucose levels From the WashU Newsroom… Scientists working to develop more effective treatments for diabetes are turning to stem cells. Such cells can be transformed into cells that produce insulin, the hormone that controls blood sugar. But there’s a major challenge: the amount of insulin produced by theses cells […]