Building next-generation solutions for type 1 diabetes
Vancouver-based Aspect Biosystems recently announced a new $280 million partnership with the Government of Canada. Breakthrough T1D Canada’s Chief Scientific Officer, Sarah Linklater, spoke with Aspect’s Founder and CEO, Tamer Mohamed, about what the news means for the future of type 1 diabetes (T1D) treatment.
Sarah: For readers who may not be familiar with Aspect Biosystems, can you tell us what the company does and which health conditions you’re focused on?
Tamer: Aspect is pioneering what we call bioengineered cellular therapies. In simple terms, these are engineered cellular medicines designed to replace the function that’s lost because of disease—and without the need for long-term immune suppression.
Our main focus is on metabolic and endocrine diseases, with T1D being a major priority. We’re developing a stem cell-derived islet replacement therapy that aims to restore blood glucose control without requiring chronic immune suppression, which has long been one of the biggest challenges in this field.
We’re also applying our platform technology to other endocrine diseases, including primary adrenal insufficiency and other rare conditions. Across all of these areas, our goal is the same: to bring the full power of our platform to serious diseases that have been extremely difficult to treat—and develop curative medicines.
Sarah: Aspect recently announced major investments from the Government of Canada. What does this mean for the T1D community?
Tamer: Canada has a deep and proud history in diabetes research, including the discovery of insulin. More than 100 years later, this partnership is about Aspect Biosystems leading the next wave of curative medicines and building something truly generational, anchored in Canada.
In 2024, we launched a $200 million partnership with the governments of Canada and British Columbia to advance our platform and therapeutic pipeline. More recently, we’ve deepened our partnership with an additional $280 million project with the federal government to strengthen our clinical development capabilities and help us go the distance.
For the T1D community, this matters because it accelerates our ability to move therapies into advanced clinical development. It brings us closer to delivering curative medicines to people in Canada and around the world—and it does so by building a generational biotech company right here at home.
Sarah: Regenerative medicine is a rapidly evolving field, especially in T1D. What makes Aspect’s approach stand out?
Tamer: We have three elements that are essential to unlocking cellular therapies with curative potential without the need for chronic immune suppression. First, access to high-quality stem cell-derived islets. Second, best-in-class immune evasion technologies that protect those cells from the immune system. And third, the manufacturing required to scale these therapies.
We took a big step forward earlier this year in our partnership with Novo Nordisk to integrate key stem cell and hypoimmune cell engineering technologies under Aspect’s leadership. Combined with our recent federal investment, this gives us a real opportunity to develop therapies that could be transformative for people living with T1D.
Sarah: Looking ahead, how does Aspect plan to work with the T1D research and clinical community, including Breakthrough T1D?
Tamer: Partnership with the people we aim to serve is absolutely central to what we do. As we advance toward first-in-human studies, continuing to deepen our understanding of the patient experience becomes even more important.
From the early days, Breakthrough T1D played a role in shaping our path – we held an industry grant that enabled us to create a focus on T1D and, later, support from the T1D Fund. Our partnership with Breakthrough T1D was never just about capital. It was about shared mission, insight, connections, and learning.
We know the challenge ahead is enormous, and we’re humbled by it. But we’re committed. Our job isn’t done until we’ve made a real difference for people living with T1D—and we’re not going to rest until we do.
