UBC, VCH receive $1M from Canada’s Stem Cell Network for cell replacement therapy research

University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) researchers have received $1M for research on a potential functional cure for type 1 diabetes. The funding, which is provided by Canada’s Stem Cell Network, will allow researchers to conduct research and a clinical trial of cell replacement therapies that would produce insulin using a medical implant containing pancreatic cells. The device would use genetically modified stem cells that researchers hope will be able to evade detection by the immune system. “This is the next step toward a potential functional cure for type 1 diabetes, which would allow people to live their lives free from daily insulin injections and free from immune suppressing drugs,” said UBC clinical assistant professor of endocrinology Dr David Thompson. UBC Note: Archived stories may contain dead links or be missing source links.