I was just diagnosed with T1, probably the LADA: late onset autoimmune type.
I have been reading on the net about successfull taming of the immune systems T-cells to stop them from destroying beta cells in rats or mice (by introducing beta cells in the environment, Thymus, were the immune cells are produced)! An other approach are drugs that suppress the immune system from destroying the the beta cells.
My beta cells are still producing some insuline and I would be very interested in cryopreserving some pancreati tissue for the future!! Has anyone done this or heard of this as a possible investment?
The reality is that by the time you are clinically diagnosed, more than 90% of your beta cells have already been destroyed. You might be able to preserve the remainder (there are a few treatments which have shown some success in doing so), but you’re certainly not likely to preserve insulin independence, but having some residual beta cell function can make managing the condition slightly easier, so there is value in doing so. I don’t know much about cryopreservation as such, but the monoclonal antibody approach to preservation has been studied quite extensively, the only issue is that these treatments are not easily obtained outside of a laboratory, so best of luck finding a source!
