Type 1 diabetes (ReN002)

Type 1, or early onset, insulin-dependent diabetes currently requires obligatory daily insulin injections, leading to further complications such as blindness, neuropathies and kidney or liver problems.

We are working to develop pancreatic stem cell aggregates, or 'organoids', suitable for implantation into Type 1 diabetes patients. Once implanted, these organoids will secrete insulin and restore normal glycaemic function, offering a potential 'one-off' cure for the disease.

Market opportunity

Type 1 diabetes accounts for between 5 and 10 per cent of all diagnosed cases of diabetes. In the US alone, there are estimated to be approximately one million sufferers, with 30,000 new cases diagnosed each year. The direct and indirect costs of Type 1 diabetes in the US are estimated at $5 billion per annum.

Recombinant insulin injection is the principal current treatment. A small number of patients receive pancreas transplants but donor organ supply is low and the immunosuppressant drug regimen required is problematic. Current islet cell transplant treatments suffer from a low success rate.

Progress

We are deriving human pancreatic cells to GLP standard ahead of pre-clinical efficacy testing. The stem cell lines generated thus far show the functional features of multipotential islet cells, the type of cell required for this project.

The diabetes programme brings technology that we believe could also be developed as a transplantation delivery concept to treat diseases other than diabetes.

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