Stem cells offer hope with diabetes

Human embryonic stem cells transformed into nearly normal insulin-producing cells when implanted into mice, possibly offering a way to treat diabetes long-term, according to research published online in the journal Nature Biotechnology.

A team from Novocell Inc. in San Diego used embryos discarded by fertility clinics, implanting immature cells under the skin and into other areas of the mice.

For reasons that are not completely understood, chemicals in the animal’s body directed them to begin producing insulin and other enzymes normally produced by pancreatic islets.

The company also has a way to encapsulate the cells so that they are not attacked by a recipient’s immune system.