With the already heightened demand placed on organ donation, stem cell therapy has become a tantalizing idea to provide glucose-responsive insulin-producing cells to Type 1 diabetic patients as an alternative to islet transplantation. Multiple groups have developed varied approaches to create a population of cells with the appropriate characteristics. Both adult and embryonic stem cells have received an enormous amount of attention as possible sources of insulin-producing cells. Although adult stem cells lack the pluripotent nature of their embryonic counterparts, they appear to avoid the ethical debate that has centred around the latter. This may limit the eventual application of embryonic stem cells, which have already shown promise in early mouse models. One must also consider the potential of stem cells to form teratomas, a complication which would prove devastating in an immunologically compromised transplant recipient. The present review looks at the progress to date in both the adult and embryonic stem cells fields as potential treatments for diabetes. We also consider some of the limitations of stem cell therapy and the potential complications that may develop with their use.
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Review Article|
October 12 2009
Are stem cells a cure for diabetes?
Michael D. McCall;
Michael D. McCall
*Department of Surgery, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, T6G 2C8
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Christian Toso;
Christian Toso
*Department of Surgery, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, T6G 2C8
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Emmanuel E. Baetge;
Emmanuel E. Baetge
†Novocell Inc., San Diego, CA 92121, U.S.A.
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A. M. James Shapiro
*Department of Surgery, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, T6G 2C8
‡Clinical Islet Transplant Program, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, T6G 2C8
Correspondence: Dr A. M. James Shapiro (email [email protected]).
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Publisher: Portland Press Ltd
Received:
February 05 2009
Revision Received:
April 14 2009
Accepted:
May 12 2009
Online ISSN: 1470-8736
Print ISSN: 0143-5221
© The Authors Journal compilation © 2010 Biochemical Society
2010
Clin Sci (Lond) (2010) 118 (2): 87–97.
Article history
Received:
February 05 2009
Revision Received:
April 14 2009
Accepted:
May 12 2009
Citation
Michael D. McCall, Christian Toso, Emmanuel E. Baetge, A. M. James Shapiro; Are stem cells a cure for diabetes?. Clin Sci (Lond) 15 January 2010; 118 (2): 87–97. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/CS20090072
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