The European study of patients with Type I diabetes found that short-term treatment lowered insulin dependence by 12 percent and increased insulin-making capabilities for at least 18 months.

"The results are very promising. There are not many instances where you can stop an autoimmune disease in its tracks," said Dr. Richard Insel, executive vice president for research of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
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The RSPCA is urging pet owners to be aware of diseases that pets can have that are normally not associated with animals like diabetes.

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A multicenter international study chaired by a Joslin Diabetes Center investigator and reported in the July issue of the American Diabetes Association’s journal Diabetes brings hopeful news to the 18 million people in the United States — and millions more worldwide — with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Initial results of the Phase III clinical trial demonstrated that 32 milligrams per day of ruboxistaurin (RBX) was well tolerated and may reduce the risk of moderate vision loss, especially in patients with diabetic macular edema.

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Speedel announced today the start of its Phase III study for SPP301, its once-a-day oral endothelin A receptor antagonist (ERA) in the indication of diabetic nephropathy (diabetic kidney disease). The ASCEND(1) study has begun with the first patient visit as per the schedule outlined by Speedel in March 2005 when the company reported successful completion of the Phase II clinical trials.

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We have forked of our coverage of Stem Cell Research news and views in our recently launched The Stem Cell Blog. You will find it much more active than it was under the folds of multi-faceted Simple Thoughts Blog.

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Three transplant patients have died as a result of receiving an organ from a donor who had unknowingly been infected with a common rodent virus. A fourth patient who received a kidney from the organ donor is recovering.

In what is believed to be only the second documented case in which the viral infection LCMV was transmitted through an organ transplant, four patients in all were infected and health officials say the infection has been traced to a female organ donor from Rhode Island who died of unrelated causes, but who was exposed to a common rodent virus, possibly from a pet hamster.

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With supplemental oxygen, Will Cross, 37 became the first person with type 1 diabetes to reach the South Summit of Mt. Everest. That put him just shy of the top of the 29,029-foot mountain.

while this is not the top, is a great achievement for a type 1 diabetic. Will has called in and stated he only went as far as the South Summit of Everest and turned around because of high winds… For a type 1 diabetic, this is beyond what many can dream.

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The Moscow chemists have suggested a way to produce insulin in pills instead of injections. They have developed polymeric capsules that would protect insulin from destructive effect of digestive juices.

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A new gene suspected to contribute to autoimmune diseases such as type 1 diabetes and lupus - a condition in which the body’s own immune system attacks organs such as the kidneys and skin - has been discovered by Australian National University (ANU) immunologists.

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LATimes has a scathing editorial on the Stem Cell hypocrisy practiced by Bush and his government.

Photographs in Wednesday's papers of President Bush with cuddly little babies, all of whom were produced from surplus fertilized eggs at fertility clinics, represent a White House attempt to deal with the biggest flaw in logic regarding its stem cell policy — and its moral weak point.

Here is what happens to those embryos: Some are destroyed because a microscopic examination indicates that they are defective or abnormal. Some of the rest are implanted. But generally, there are some left over. These may be discarded, or frozen for future attempts, or frozen indefinitely; it's up to the customers.

Encouraging the donation of frozen embryos to prospective parents, even under the most optimistic scenario, would put only a small dent in the supply. According to a 2003 study, there are almost half a million frozen human embryos in storage in the United States. The vast majority of them — 87% — were frozen in case the parents might need them, but the vast majority of that vast majority will never be needed or used. An embryo-adoption drive wouldn't save the embryos that die in other stages of the process. And ironically, the recipients of donated fertilized eggs also generally have several implanted in the hope that one will survive. In effect, donation results in the deaths of embryos that would otherwise stay frozen.

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