MIT engineers have developed an implantable device that carries hundreds of thousands of insulin-producing pancreatic islet cells and also generates its own on-board oxygen. When implanted into diabetic mice, the device successfully regulated blood glucose levels for at least a month. The researchers hope to create a larger version of the device that could be tested in people with Type 1 diabetes. The device could potentially be adapted to treat other diseases that require the delivery of therapeutic proteins. The researchers plan to test the device in larger animals and eventually in humans.
https://news.mit.edu/2023/implantable-device-enable-injection-free-control-diabetes-0918