

A cure for type 1 diabetes in dogs - msp
http://www.kurzweilai.net/a-cure-for-type-1-diabetes

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awolf
Very interesting. Am I understanding this correctly: it's an insulin
_replacement_? Those treated would have effectively no insulin in their blood
stream?

If so, wouldn't those treated by this gene therapy still suffer a persistent
hormone imbalance? Hormones are complicated. Insulin (and the lack thereof) is
tied in up-down regulation of lots of other hormones. Glucagon, for one, would
always be higher in your body meaning you'd be prone to break down your body's
fat stores. While that might actually be a positive side effect, I wouldn't be
surprised if there were many negative side effects too.

Still, the side effects from this hypothetical hormone imbalance is very
likely a huge improvement over constantly having advanced glycation end-
products slowly destroying your body (which is what slowly happens to us type
1 diabetics).

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lloyddobbler
It's a bit poorly-worded...but looks like it says the therapy does 2 things:
1) It expresses the insulin-producing genes (insulin is the protein hormone
that binds with glucose in the blood to convert it to ATP, or energy), and 2)
it expresses the Glucokinase genes (Glucokinase is a hormone that regulate
glucose uptake from the blood).

(I know you're type 1 - me, too - but wanted to explain it further for those
who don't know how it works.)

Agreed on the hormone imbalance side of things. The Glucagon issue seems very
real. However, if it's in essence stimulating insulin production as well as
improving the glucose uptake, then that in turn should balance the blood sugar
effects of Glucagon. As for the other effects, though...that definitely
remains to be seen.

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pmiller2
It's a cure, if you're a beagle. This is good, but not huge news.

~~~
haimez
Without a degree in Biochemistry, this appears to be a proof of concept. A
demonstration that it's possible and the challenge is adapting it to humans,
instead if starting from scratch. Seems to be pretty huge news for people with
diabetes.

~~~
pmiller2
Exactly. There are thousands of these proofs of concept in mice. How many
times have we heard of various cancers being cured in mice?

Keep in mind, too, a dog's metabolism is very different from ours. Yes, this
is good news, but we're talking about an animal that would be killed by eating
too much chocolate. I'll get really excited about this once we've cured some
diabetic chimps.

~~~
ChuckMcM
There was a recent article in Science News [1] about the challenge of applying
mouse studies to humans, followed by the NY Times slightly more exaggerated
coverage [2]. Studies on non-humans for human issues can be misleading.

[1]
[http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/348250/descriptio...](http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/348250/description/In_research_it_matters_whether_youre_a_man_or_a__mouse)

[2] [http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/12/science/testing-of-some-
de...](http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/12/science/testing-of-some-deadly-
diseases-on-mice-mislead-report-says.html?_r=0)

~~~
lloyddobbler
Agreed. They certainly can be misleading for those who expect them to
translate over to humans without a hitch.

However, if one goes into trials on mice, dogs, and other animals with the
understanding that you're comparing apples to oranges, there can be a lot
gained.

This approach, for instance, is something completely different than I've ever
seen WRT Type 1 diabetes. It's a 180-degree approach from islet cell
transplants, semi-permeable protective membranes, and immuno-suppressive
drugs. As a proof of concept, I think they can probably learn a lot from it -
even if they can't simply copy it to humans exactly.

