Grant: Team Grant: CIHR-JDRF-Accelerating Stem Cell-Based Therapies for Type 1 Diabetes

A cure for type 1 diabetes may lie in the replacement of insulin-producing cells by transplantation. Hundreds of patients worldwide (including ~400 in Canada) have received transplants of islets - clusters of insulin-producing cells in the pancreas - enabling better blood glucose control without the need for insulin administration. Yet because there are not enough organ donors, new sources of insulin-producing cells are needed for the millions living with this disease. We can now generate insulin-producing cells from stem cells but these cells do not secrete insulin properly nor do they survive transplantation without immunosuppression. In response, our team aims to use our combined expertise in single cell technologies, genome editing, immunology, and stem cell and islet biology to produce a new and improved cell source for cell replacement therapy in diabetes, that can be tested in clinical trial in a few years. Such an advance could not only transform the lives of thousands of Canadians living with diabetes but also greatly reduce the tremendous economic and health burden that diabetes places on Canada today.