Cell delivery systems: Toward the next generation of cell therapies for type 1 diabetes |
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| Authors: | Hoang Phuc Dang Hui Chen Tim R. Dargaville Bernard E. Tuch |
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| Affiliation: | 1. School of Life Science, Faculty of Science, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney New South Wales, Australia ; 2. School of Chemistry and Physics, and Centre for Materials Science, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane Queensland, Australia ; 3. Department of Diabetes, Central Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing & Health Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne Victoria, Australia ; 4. Australian Foundation for Diabetes Research, Sydney New South Wales, Australia |
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| Abstract: | Immunoprotection and oxygen supply are vital in implementing a cell therapy for type 1 diabetes (T1D). Without these features, the transplanted islet cell clusters will be rejected by the host immune system, and necrosis will occur due to hypoxia. The use of anti‐rejection drugs can help protect the transplanted cells from the immune system; yet, they also may have severe side effects. Cell delivery systems (CDS) have been developed for islet transplantation to avoid using immunosuppressants. CDS provide physical barriers to reduce the immune response and chemical coatings to reduce host fibrotic reaction. In some CDS, there is architecture to support vascularization, which enhances oxygen exchange. In this review, we discuss the current clinical and preclinical studies using CDS without immunosuppression as a cell therapy for T1D. We find that though CDS have been demonstrated for their ability to support immunoisolation of the grafted cells, their functionality has not been fully optimized. Current advanced methods in clinical trials demonstrate the systems are partly functional, physically complicated to implement or inefficient. However, modifications are being made to overcome these issues. |
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| Keywords: | cell delivery system cell therapy immunoprotection type 1 diabetes vascularization |
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