After receiving a transplant of her own stem cells, a 25-year-old woman with Type 1 diabetes is producing her own insulin again. It’s a world first that could lead to significant improvements in treatment.
According to the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, diabetes affects around 38 million Americans — roughly 1 in 10 people. And 20% don’t know they have the potentially deadly disease.
It was the eighth leading cause of death in the United States in 2021, killing around 31 of every 100,000 people. But for the woman whose disease was completely reversed with a trailblazing treatment, things are pretty sweet.
“I can eat sugar now,” the Tianjin, China native — who asked to remain anonymous for her privacy — told Nature. “I enjoy eating everything — especially hotpot.”
Published in Cell, the study depicting her successful treatment is one of only a few pioneering trials in stem cell application for diabetes. But most other trials concern Type 2 diabetes, making the woman’s Type 1 diabetes reversal even more extraordinary.
In June 2023, Peking University cell biologist Deng Hongkui and his fellow researchers spent less than a half-hour operating on the Tianjin native. Using a reprogramming technique that allowed them to craft chemically induced stem cells, the researchers made an injection of cells in her abdominal muscles. Then they monitored the results through magnetic resonance imaging, adding and removing cells as needed over the coming weeks.
Just over two months later, she was producing insulin well enough to no longer require treatment. It’s now been over a year, and her insulin levels are holding strong. The results, according to the study authors, are promising, but more research into the treatment is needed.
University of Miami endocrinologist and Type 1 diabetes researcher Jay Skyler spoke with Nature’s Smriti Mallapaty about the trial, explaining that she would like to see the results proven replicable in more people. She also wants to see the 25-year-old’s insulin production remain stable for at least five years before considering her “cured.”
It’s a treatment success that has sparked curiosity among Hongkui’s peers, but only time will tell if it will prove to have larger implications in the fight against diabetes.
“That’s remarkable,” Kyoto University diabetes researcher Daisuke Yabe told Nature. “If this is applicable to other patients, it’s going to be wonderful.”
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