Month: June 2025

On Jan 7, 2025 (Sweden), Sana Biotechnology released significant clinical data: the first person with type 1 diabetes (T1D) who received deceased donor islets engineered to evade the immune system is producing insulin without immunosuppression.

UPDATE: June 23, 2025
Sana Biotechnology presented updated data on June 23, 2025 at the six-month follow up timepoint. The single patient dosed with hypoimmune donor islets continues to produce insulin in response to a mixed meal tolerance test (MMTT) without the use of immunosuppressants. 

The details

This is a big step for cell-based therapies for potentially curing T1D. Sana’s first-in-human study consists of allogeneic islets, meaning they are derived from an external source, which in this case is the pancreases of deceased donors. These islets were engineered to avoid recognition by the immune system (hypoimmune) and were implanted intramuscularly into a person with T1D. After four weeks, circulating C-peptide increased, meaning that the beta cells are alive, healthy, and producing insulin—all without the need for immunosuppression and no safety issue. This is the first evidence of engineered islets successfully avoiding immune destruction.

What this means for the T1D community

While this is an incredibly promising step forward for the T1D community, to have allogenic cells survive without the use of immunosuppressants, this trial relied on deceased donor cells, of which there will never be enough to provide to everyone living with T1D.  The trial was done in a single participant and is reporting only 4-weeks of data – this is a proof-of-concept study that is promising but very preliminary.

What’s next: lots to look forward to

Breakthrough T1D believes that the best chance for T1D cures lies in stem cell-based therapies since deceased donor islets are in short supply, while stem cell-derived islets can be produced at scale. Engineering cells to evade immune attack is a new path forward to protect the insulin-producing beta cells and avoid the use of immunosuppressants. Most importantly, this technology is being studied to apply to stem cell-based therapies, which is a scalable solution for many more people with T1D. This hypoimmune technology moves us closer to the possibility of having enough immune-evading cells for everyone with T1D.

Another trial is in progress testing a similar approach (CRISPR) in Canada – https://clinicaltrials.breakthrought1d.ca/clinical-trial/NCT05565248

While this approach will take significant time, effort, and money, every day we take another step toward a possible life-changing T1D cure. 

Breakthrough T1D’s Role

The primary objective of Breakthrough T1D’s beta cell replacement efforts is to place insulin-producing cells into people with T1D without the use of immunosuppressants. Breakthrough T1D strongly supports the development of stem cell-based therapies that do not require broad immunosuppression and Breakthrough T1D International based out of the US recently launched an initiative to accelerate this faster than ever (Project ACT – Accelerate Cell Therapies). To contribute to the advancement of these game-changing therapies, the T1D Fund: A Breakthrough T1D Venture invested in Sana recognizing that their hypoimmune engineering technology held significant promise for T1D cell therapies. We look forward to seeing how the trial progresses.

Kendra Fisher is a former member of Team Canada’s hockey program, a 3x world inline hockey champion, and a firefighter. She is also the Founder of Mentally Fit; a professional speaker, a mental health coach, and an author in the making. Kendra may be best known for her hockey career, and for making the life-altering decision to step away from her dream of playing for Team Canada in order to manage diagnoses of Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder, Clinical Depression, Agoraphobia, and OCD.

Kendra has been open about her journey with mental illness, and deeply vulnerable in sharing the devastating loss of her son, River, at 32 weeks gestation. When her son Bodhi was a toddler, he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D). Now a Breakthrough T1D Canada Ambassador, Kendra is also involved with the Breakthrough T1D Walk in Toronto. She recently sat down with Breakthrough T1D Canada to share how her family navigated Bodhi’s diagnosis, all in the wake of infant loss and during the challenges of the pandemic.

Breakthrough T1D Canada: Can you share a little about the time of Bodhi’s diagnosis?

Kendra:

It was during COVID, so everything already felt intense and overwhelming. I was working as a full-time firefighter, on shift in a high-stress environment. Fortunately, Bodhi’s other mom, Kristy, was incredibly intuitive and picked up early signs that something wasn’t right.

Bodhi had been drinking constantly; he’d go from glass to glass, drinking everyone’s water. At first, we didn’t think too much of it. On its own, the thirst didn’t seem alarming. But at the same time, he was soaking through diapers. We started doubling up, laying down crib liners, trying everything, and nothing worked.

Kristy kept raising concerns that this was something more serious. Having lost our son, I was sure we were being hypervigilant—looking for problems, being too cautious. But one morning, Bodhi decided he was only going to use the potty, and by 11 a.m., he’d filled it ten times. Kristy messaged me as I was coming off shift and said she was taking him to the urgent care clinic at St. Joe’s.

Just based on those two symptoms, they checked his blood sugar, and it was incredibly high. We were told he was likely in DKA and that we either needed to admit him immediately or take him by ambulance to Sick Kids to begin treatment.

Because of COVID protocols, only one parent could go into the hospital. Kristy went in with him while I waited outside. I’ll never forget that call, Kristy was crying. She told me the doctor was coming to meet me in the lobby to give permission for me to come in. That’s where I was told, face to face, “He has diabetes.” Sick Kids would be overseeing his care.

The surreal part was that those were the only symptoms; excessive thirst and urination. He was otherwise his normal, happy, outgoing self. They got him on an IV right away and started titrating insulin. It was all happening so fast, trying to understand what was going on while still in complete shock.

They later got a more precise ketone reading and, miraculously, Bodhi wasn’t in full DKA. They called him a “warrior.” He had somehow drunk enough water to flush out the ketones. At 6 p.m. that same day, they told us we could take him home.

As a firefighter, my only experience with diabetes was responding to people in crisis. From that limited perspective, it didn’t seem possible that it was safe to bring him home. But that was day one of our new life.

And we were navigating all of this in isolation. One parent at appointments. We’d just lost River. We had our older son, Finley, who was five at the time, and the last time we had gone to the hospital for his baby brother, we came home alone. His fear was enormous. He was terrified for his little brother. As a family, we had to divide and conquer. Bodhi went straight into diabetes day care at Sick Kids the next day, and we were thrown into this world we didn’t yet understand.

Breakthrough T1D Canada: What do you want other parents to understand about type 1 diabetes?

Kendra:

I truly believe people mean well when they share their responses to learning about Bodhi; they want to help, be kind, and be supportive. But a lot of people confuse type 1 diabetes with type 2 diabetes. We were met with well-meaning, but misinformed advice. People telling us Bodhi would be fine if we cut out sugar or junk food. A friend giving him an apple instead of a lollipop, not realizing I hadn’t accounted for it in his insulin dose and that it didn’t matter that it was a healthy snack.

Others suggested things like a keto diet so he wouldn’t need insulin. And while these suggestions might come from a good place, they can be exhausting to correct, especially when you’re still trying to understand it all yourself.

Even those with experience of T1D can sometimes overwhelm you with too much information. In the beginning, it felt like there was no soft place to land. No clear starting point. This diagnosis doesn’t just affect your child; it affects your whole family.

Finley has been an incredible big brother. He’s patient, kind, and understanding. We went from having an open snack shelf to locking cupboards. His eating schedule has had to adapt to Bodhi’s. But it’s hard, finding balance between giving your child with T1D the attention they need, while still being fully present for your other child.

Breakthrough T1D Canada: What have you learned since those early days?

Kendra:

I’ve learned how important it is not to lean too heavily into toxic positivity. At first, I tried to “silver lining” everything. “At least we have CGMs, pumps, amazing doctors.” And it’s all true. But I also needed to leave room for honesty.

Through the lens of mental health, I’ve learned that it’s okay to say, “This sucks sometimes.” Bodhi doesn’t always want the attention that comes with being different; asking a parent to enter carbs when a friend offers a snack or navigating insulin doses at events. That constant spotlight can be hard for a kid.

And as a parent, it’s heartbreaking knowing there are parts of his experience I’ll never truly understand. But we sit with him. We let him tell us when it’s hard, when it hurts, when he’s frustrated. We don’t try to fix it, we just let him know it’s okay to feel that way.

In the beginning, I didn’t want to accept what it really meant to be his caregiver. The decision fatigue is real. Constant calculations: Is it hot out? How active will he be? What’s the carb ratio? When’s the next blood sugar spike? What’s the correction factor? These aren’t questions other parents have to ask themselves before heading out the door.

We give Bodhi permission to feel everything. To be disappointed. To be sad. We don’t downplay his experience. That’s not our right. And it wouldn’t help him feel any less alone.

Breakthrough T1D Canada: Any final thoughts you’d like to share?

Kendra:

We are so grateful for the research, the tech, and the medical teams that support us. These things do make managing T1D more possible than ever before.

But we take it one day at a time, with honesty.

(Somewhere in the conversation, Kendra receives a message from Bodhi’s kindergarten teacher.)

Kendra:

I saw the message and my heart jumped. It turned out another child had hit Bodhi on the shoulder. The teacher was just letting me know and had informed the other parents too. I took a breath and reminded myself, he’s upright, he’s okay, we’re winning today.

That’s how we do this.

One breath at a time.

One moment at a time.

You can learn more about Kendra Fisher and follow her podcast here: https://kendrafisher.com/

We’ve made major progress in the development of cell replacement therapies for type 1 diabetes (T1D) over the past few decades – much of it right here in Canada. We know that manufactured islets can be safely implanted into people, where they start to make insulin. But there is more work to do to advance these therapies to bring them to more people with T1D.

To drive new work in this area, Breakthrough T1D is pleased to announce a partnership with Canada’s Stem Cell Network (SCN), a non-profit, federally funded organization focused on stem cell and regenerative medicine research. Together, Breakthrough T1D and SCN will support four new projects led by Canadian researchers.

This announcement is an exciting expansion of a strategic partnership that began in 2021. In line with both organizations’ commitment to training future research leaders, we worked together to establish the J. Andrew McKee Fellowship program, awarded annually to a postdoctoral researcher working in regenerative medicine to join the Breakthrough T1D Centre of Excellence at UBC. Past fellows (awarded in 2022, 2023 and 2024) have brought expertise from many fields and countries to the Centre’s research team.  Additionally, with both organizations’ interest in accelerating research to commercialization, Breakthrough T1D collaborated with Stem Cell Network to pilot a training program that aimed to increase the regulatory literacy of research trainees, which has subsequently reached many trainees working in regenerative medicine across the country.

To continue the increasing momentum in the field of stem cell-based therapies for T1D, we have now expanded our partnership to fund new translational research focused on innovation and commercialization. We are now excited to be able to announce four jointly funded projects that will receive support from May 2025 – April 2027. These grants are part of SCN’s 2025 national competition on regenerative medicine which is supporting a total of 36 grants.

Dr. Tim Kieffer (UBC), Dr. James Shapiro (University of Alberta), Dr. Takanori Takebe (Cincinnati Children’s Hospital), & Lunar Therapeutics (Vancouver, BC) – Fueling Biotechnology Partnerships Award

Combining stem cell-derived islets and vasculature for a better islet replacement product

Current cell therapies for T1D (i.e., islet transplantation), while often effective, are hampered by reliance upon donated organs and poor cell survival after transplant, necessitating large doses of cells and repeat procedures.  This ambitious new project will address both the source of islet cells and the low cell survival rates associated with islet transplantation by accelerating Lunar Therapeutics’ pre-clinical development of a stem cell-derived islet replacement product, what Takebe’s lab describes as ‘complex miniature organs’ for T1D.

This product will consist not only of insulin-producing cells, but also endothelial cells – like those that line blood vessels and the heart. Endothelial cells will support islet cell survival and engraftment upon transplantation.

To accomplish this objective, Lunar Therapeutics will bring together Canadian expertise in stem cell-derived islets and clinical islet transplantation led by Drs. Timothy Kieffer and James Shapiro. The team will also include US-based Dr. Takanori Takebe who specializes in designing complex organoids composed of various cell types. Using technologies developed across each member’s laboratory, this multidisciplinary team will work to deliver an effective islet cell replacement solution.

Dr. Marya Ahmed & Dr. James Shapiro (University of Alberta) – Impact Award

Using naturally derived gels to optimize cryopreservation (extreme cold storage) of stem cell-derived islet

 The implantation of stem cell-derived islets in people with T1D can restore insulin production, eliminating the need to inject insulin and improving the life quality of patients. However; after islet cells are harvested (from cadaveric donors) or created (from engineered stem cells) they must be stored before being used to treat a person with T1D. Currently, the storage and transportation of islet cells is difficult and the only storage method is freezing at low temperatures in the presence of reagents (chemical solutions) that help with the freezing process. However, these reagents cause cell death during thawing and can also cause allergic reactions in people when transplanted. 

This project will address this gap in the field by aiming to develop non-toxic, naturally derived gels to optimize stem cell and islet freezing and storage. The identified gel-based products will be evaluated for commercial scale production. The success of this project will provide new intellectual property that will be of interest to researchers and companies in regenerative medicine in Canada and across the globe.

Dr. Corinne Hoesli (McGill), Dr. André Bégin-Drolet (Laval), Dr. Richard Leask (McGill), Dr. Andras Nagy (Sinai Health, Toronto), Dr. Steven Paraskevas (McGill) – Impact Award

Vascular lattice bioartificial pancreas for diabetes cellular therapy
(Using blood vessels to create a better encapsulation device for islet replacement therapies)

Stem cell-derived islets offer a potentially unlimited source of islets for transplantation. Since stem cell-derived islets carry unique risks compared with donor-derived islets, containment within a device could allow retrieval if off-target growth ever occurs. However, encapsulation devices that have been tested in clinical trials so far and have shown minimal success, mainly because blood supply to the cells is limited within the devices. In this project, the team proposes to develop a device where the stem cell-derived islets are placed around pre-established vessels that can improve islet cell survival and speed of insulin responses via improved blood supply. In this project, they will optimize their device design and conduct advanced preclinical studies.

This project could lead to better survival and function of stem cell-derived islets. The device could provide long-term blood glucose control without external intervention. The project can also pave the way for other engineered human-scale bioartificial organs.

Dr. Megan Levings, Dr. Bruce Verchere, Dr. Francis Lynn & Dr. Peter Zandstra (UBC) – Impact Award

Using stem cells to create a human T1D immune system model in a petri dish

There are many new treatments on the horizon for T1D, such as replacement of insulin-producing cells, and therapies that seek to block autoimmunity, such as so-called “inverse vaccines” and immune cell therapies. However, a major barrier to all these therapies is the lack of an easy-to-use model in which their effects on human cells can be tested before advancing to human trials. The standard pre-clinical model is to test therapies in small animal models of T1D, but this has significant limitations since it is nearly impossible to replicate the human immune system. In fact, diabetes has been ‘cured’ hundreds of times in a mouse model, which has not translated to humans.

To overcome this barrier, Dr. Levings and her team will establish a new a model that recreates human T1D autoimmunity in the lab. The model will use stem cells to create the three types of cells that are involved in the disease: insulin-producing cells and two different types of immune cells, known as T cells and antigen presenting cells. Using the model, cells can then be combined in different ways to create a method that resembles what usually happens during autoimmunity.

A model of human T1D that can be generated in the lab will help test potential treatments and prompt new questions about why T1D develops, and how to prevent it. Thus, this research has the potential to support the further development of innovative therapies that may offer new approaches to prevent or treat people with T1D.

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Curing T1D is the north star of Breakthrough T1D, and we are thrilled to continue to build upon and strengthen the relationship with SCN towards our shared goal of a world free from T1D through innovation and forward-thinking research.

Breakthrough T1D Canada will continue to provide updates on these projects as they become available.

Jim Beatty is a passionate volunteer in the fight against type 1 diabetes.  For many years, Jim has volunteered with the JDRF, and now Breakthrough T1D, emceeing events and participating on various committees.

Jim has been living with type 1 diabetes for more than 20 years, following his adult diagnosis. Jim is a former journalist who now operates his own communications company in Victoria, B.C., where he likes to hike, fish and enjoy the West Coast with his family.

Breakthrough T1D Canada: Can you share what you remember about the lead up to you being diagnosed?

Jim Beatty: I was healthy, active; I had two young kids. At the time, I was the bureau chief for the Vancouver Sun covering the provincial legislature, which was a busy, stressful job. Every fall, I had my bloodwork done trying to get my cholesterol down. In the fall, everything was fine with my bloodwork. But things would soon change. As Christmas approached, I know exactly the morning – I was going to interview the Premier (Gordon Campbell at the time) for the usual year-end discussion, where we talk about the year that was, and year that will be, a kind of a state of the union address.
 
I remember I got dressed at home, put on my suit and tie but then saying to my wife that I don’t feel good, I don’t think I can go to work. I was so sick, and it hit me so fast that my wife had to call the press secretary to cancel the interview for me.

For two weeks, I had what I thought was very severe flu. But two months later, I noticed I was always exhausted, I would fall asleep after dinner, and I had an unquenchable thirst. I started needing to wake up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom. On their own, all these symptoms are all pretty benign and easily ignored or explained away.

But it wasn’t getting better, so I went to my family doctor, and he said let’s just do some bloodwork. Bloodwork came back and the doctor, said “you have diabetes.” Not type 1, just ‘diabetes’. I knew nothing about diabetes. Type 1 or two. Nobody had it in my family, I had no familiarity with this disease, and back then, there was no Google to look anything up.

I had an initial misdiagnosis of type 2, because when you were my age (36), for most doctors, they see it as most likely being type 2. I was told to modify my diet and do more exercise. I did all that, even though I had already been living that way before for the most part. I got my blood tested again and the A1C was still really high. They put me on Metformin, and that didn’t work either. And so, I needed to go insulin, with multiple daily injections. 

I didn’t like needles, and I remember sitting on the side of my bed, with an actual needle and having to put that in my belly. I will never forget how tough that was, how invasive it felt. February was when I first told I had diabetes, and by summer I was on insulin therapy.

Breakthrough T1D Canada: How did you navigate your diagnosis?

Jim Beatty: I did everything the doctors told me to do; I didn’t foot drag on that. But I did feel robbed; I did feel that it might be a mistake (the diagnosis of T1D). I did think maybe I could exercise or diet my way out of it, maybe it’s a blip, a false-positive? I was doubting and I had persistent thoughts that I could work my way out of it. But after a while, it was quite clear it wasn’t going anywhere.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have anyone to talk to about it. I didn’t know anyone with type 1. Other than my family doctor, who I saw every 3-4 months, I was navigating it on my own. I wish that the supports that are available today were available then, especially for adults.

It was isolating, lonely, and there were just so many questions. Things that I take for granted now, I had no idea then. It was all new. I’d never handled a needle before. I’d never done finger poking (to check blood glucose levels). I certainly didn’t know what basal and bolus meant (types of insulins). My endocrinologist was talking in terms and language that I had no reference for. It was a confusing and frustrating period.

Initially, I was a newspaper reporter, and I did share with the two colleagues who I worked closely with, they needed to know I had this condition, that I might need sugar, that I was having frequent doctor’s appointments. I didn’t let management or bosses know, however. My thought process was that it was going to be an impediment to my career success, that it would be seen as a weakness, or a vulnerability. And that it might be a reason not to promote me to the next level.

Not long after my diagnosis, I moved to television broadcasting. I was the Bureau Chief with CTV Vancouver. I did tell the cameraman who I was working with every day, because for example if I told him I need to eat, I needed to eat. It wasn’t just hunger. It was a need.

But I still wasn’t comfortable with my diagnosis, and I didn’t speak freely, outside of family and friends.

I had moved my job again and I was the chief news anchor for CHEK News in Victoria, and this philosophy still hadn’t changed much. Bosses, news director, management – none of them knew I had type 1. I largely kept my diagnosis invisible. I would be anchoring the news, and when we went to commercial break, I had a little table next to me, and I would do a finger poke to see if I needed sugar, or to calibrate my insulin. And people didn’t know I was doing this; it was all hidden.

Then, a call from Breakthrough T1D (then JDRF), would change everything. I was asked to emcee a fundraising gala event. They were asking because I was a broadcaster and was known in the community, but they had no idea I had T1D. The request threw me into a bit of a tailspin because I knew if I was going to be genuine and host a fundraiser for type 1 diabetes research; it would be disingenuous not to admit I was also living with this.

I thought about the request for a few days. I ruminated over whether I should ‘go public’ and eventually I decided that yes, I’m going to do it. The first people I spoke with were my bosses. I said, ‘look I’m going to be hosting this event on Saturday, and it could be a news story when I reveal that I also have type 1 diabetes.’

Then, I stood up on the stage, and I basically ‘came out’ – ‘I am not just your emcee, I am one of you.’ And I told my story. It was a great night. It was a very liberating evening. People came up to thank me, I immediately felt support. And it was the beginning of being open about living with this disease and living with it as you need to. Unafraid to talk about it, being honest about any assistance you might need. It was a pivotal moment because it freed me.

I had no connection with Breakthrough T1D (JDRF) before that event, and it started a relationship that continues to this day. Galas in Victoria, Vancouver, Walks, Rides, government relations committee. It was very liberating and took me places I didn’t expect.

Breakthrough T1D Canada: What would a cure look like for you?

Jim Beatty: What I think of as a cure is something that will return my life to normalcy. Living without having to carry snacks with me, being hooked up 24/7 to the devices, being able to go for a walk or a hike, or to eat pizza, and not doing all the thinking and calculating that comes with it. A cure would be a life when I no longer have to constantly think about diabetes and all its complications.  It would be a return to having the life I had before. So, yes, of course, it would be fantastic.

Five years, five years, every diabetic has said that they’ve been hearing ‘the cure is coming in five years’ for decades. That ‘five years’ is a false hope, so I don’t say that anymore, or believe it could be possible in five years.

So, when I think about the cure, I don’t think about the ‘cure’ per se. I am more interested in treatments today that are making my life better. And there are so many that I am using today that were pipe dreams twenty years ago. I am living my life better today because of the advancements in treatment, and those incremental things have made a significant difference. Today my A1C levels are better than they’ve ever been in my life, and that is because of the CGM and insulin pump, and how they help me manage my (blood glucose) levels more precisely.

A cure is a far-off, long-distance notion to me. I view treatments as real, closer, and more tangible.

Breakthrough T1D Canada: Is there anything else you’d like to share with the T1D community?

Jim Beatty: The thing I wish I had done was to be more open to these discussions, open about my diagnosis, earlier and not keep it a secret. By holding onto it, holding onto this big secret of something so significant in my life – at the time I thought it was the right thing. But now I know that’s not the case. I could have learned more, had more support, my journey would have been better and easier, much sooner.

So please know that you don’t need to feel isolated. You can be open; you can reach out for assistance. Take the help. And know that life is good today. 

We are pleased to announce 6 new grants funded via Breakthrough T1D International (USA) to stellar Canadian scientists.  These grants all support cell therapy research to replace insulin-producing cells in people living with T1D.

Dr. Cristina Nostro, University Health Network (Toronto)

Manufacturing clinical-grade stem cell-derived islets – 2 Grants

To date, global efforts on this work – largely led by Canadians – has used research-grade cell lines which are less expensive and more readily available for experimentation. To move these therapies towards the clinic there is a requirement for Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) to be met. This includes properly trained personnel, GMP-certified premises and equipment, clinical-grade starting cell lines, validated protocols and practices, etc. 

Two shots on goal: These two grants will each use Dr. Nostro’s world-renowned differentiation protocol to engineer islets using clinical-grade stem cell lines in GMP-certified facilities that have the ability to scale up the differentiation process.

Consider Dr. Nostro’s differentiation protocol as an excellent sourdough bread recipe perfected in her kitchen with consistent, delicious results. That recipe will now be taken to two different commercial bakeries to use their ingredients and facilities to see if they can make the same excellent sourdough loaves consistently in large production quantities.

Dr. Guy Rutter, CHUM Montreal

Imaging to explore the survival and function of stem cell-derived islets transplanted in mice

Goal: A novel imaging technique to examine human stem cell-derived islets in mice

• Will allow real-time comparison of transplant sites (liver vs under skin)
• Better assessment of cell death / blood supply / immune attack

A significant hurdle for assessing T1D and islet transplantation is that there is virtually no way to ‘see’ islets inside a person, even in small animals. No imaging technique allows us to ‘look at islets’ and see how many are alive, functional, producing insulin, etc.  This is why some clinical trials using islet transplantation devices (microencapsulation) have involved device removal at periodic timepoints so that the islets can be removed from the body and examined to evaluate their survival and function. Dr. Rutter is proposing a novel imaging technique to ‘see’ islet functioning in mice, which can help guide factors affecting the survival and function of transplanted islets.

Dr. Patrick MacDonald, University of Alberta

Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven benchmarking for understanding and improving stem cell-derived islets

Over the past 5+ years, Dr. MacDonald and his team have created a groundbreaking database: humanislets.com, which isolates islets from donated pancreases (from deceased donors with T1D, T2D, and without diabetes) and characterizes the islets and their function using “omics”. This is a broad term to encompass the study of all the biological molecules of a cell, such as genomics (DNA), transcriptomics (RNA), proteomics (proteins), and metabolomics (metabolites), etc. Together “omics” data creates an exceptionally robust characterization of each islet – and all of this is made publicly available to scientists around the world through this research.

Goal: Dr. MacDonald’s new grant will expand this Breakthrough T1D-funded database to include stem cell-derived islets for comparison to donor islets and incorporate artificial intelligence methods to dig deeper into this comparison.

Dr. Haoning Cen, University of British Columbia

Postdoctoral Fellowship (Supervisors: Dr. Francis Lynn & Dr. Leonard Foster)

A blueprint for making better beta cells

Goal: to create blueprints for donor beta cells vs stem cell-derived beta cells

• Will use protein detection to identify 10,000+ proteins
• Will classify each protein’s quantity and location to compare ‘natural’ vs stem cell-derived beta cells

Dr. Sean Kinney, University of Toronto

Postdoctoral Fellowship (Supervisor: Dr. Michael Sefton)

Biomaterial platform for islet transplantation under the skin

Goal: to create a biological scaffold (a small structure made from bio-compatible materials that can support new cell growth and survival) for islet transplantation using regenerative hydrogel.

• The scaffold will support blood vessel, nerve, tissue growth to support islet survival
• Immunomodulating therapy (modifying the immune system’s function, for example) embedded in the scaffold will be explored