New UK company created to take on diabetes

A new UK company called Islexa has been created by the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CGT) and University of Aberdeen to develop a novel technology to treat diabetes.

Islexa will produce laboratory grown islets which are the organoids responsible for insulin production and the technology could bring the option of an islet transplant to thousands more patients with type I diabetes.

At present only 30 to 50 patients with hypoglycaemic unawareness can receive an islet transplant each year due to the low availability of suitable donor organs and the difficulty involved in extracting the islets.