Diabetes Research
Although there is still no cure for diabetes, there has been some research done that might forecast some promising future results.
Different laboratories around the globe have been working on researching transplantation options for diabetics. Because it is the Islets of Langerhans in the pancreas that include the beta cells which create the necessary insulin, scientists have been working on transplanting these beta cells into diabetics so that a diabetic can produce insulin.
So far the results have been lukewarm. In Australia, they have been successful with xenotransplantation, a cross-species transplantation of beta cells from pigs to humans.
In England in 2005, they successfully managed the first transplantation of beta cells from a live person into a diabetic. This is good news because there are not enough organs donated each year to provide for the number of diabetics.
Diabetes transplants have not been one hundred percent effective, however. It seems that currently, although a diabetic body will accept insulin producing beta cells, these cells will stop producing insulin after a period of time. This means that the patient would need another transplant, or to resume insulin injections. Science is still working on this problem.
