‘Giant leap’ made in effective Type 1 diabetes treatment

Scientists believe they have made a “giant leap forward” in the quest to find an effective treatment for Type 1 diabetes. 

Using human embryonic stem cells as a starting point, experts have for the first time been able to produce human insulin-producing beta cells equivalent in almost every way to normally functioning beta cells in the kind of massive quantities needed for cell transplantation and pharmaceutical purposes.

Doug Melton, Xander University professor at Harvard University, who led the work, said he hoped to have human transplantation trials using the cells under way within a few years.