Good news for diabetic patients: IIT-B develops artificial pancreas thread
In a breakthrough achievement, the chemical engineering department of IIT-Bombay has developed bio-artificial pancreas thread that can be implanted inside a diabetic person to manage the disease. The research spearheaded by Prof. Jayesh Bellare began in 2008. He was helped by several PhD students. The clinical tests on pigs and mice yielded positive results. However, it's still years before humans can use it.
What is the thread and how it'll work
The thread can be injected into the body with a minor operation or through the belly button. It then floats around the pancreas, later secreting insulin. The membrane, having pores, has a diameter of 1 mm. When a liquid (called lumen) passes through it, the tube retains some of the constituents and allows others to pass through. The device supports cell growth too.
Know how will the body react to the foreign object
"Generally, when something apart from one's organs is put inside, the body goes for immune rejection. However, here, the immune cells were also seen growing on the cells of the implant," Professor Bellare explained.
Test on mice showed positive results
In 2016, the artificial pancreas was injected into diabetic mice for 30 days. The implant didn't lead to any abnormalities, and neither did the immune system of the rodent reject it. Professor Bellare plans to first inject the thread to larger animals, and then to humans. If successful, diabetic patients won't have to rely on drugs and injections with this invention.
