Israeli scientists have created a living implant that can replace daily insulin injections

Scientists from the Haifa Technion and American colleagues have developed an implant that replaces insulin injections and independently regulates the patient’s blood sugar level.

The new technology is a living cell-based biosensor system that functions as a self-contained artificial pancreas. This implant is a long-acting “living medicine”. Once installed in the patient’s body, the system begins to work completely independently: it continuously monitors blood glucose levels, synthesizes insulin inside the device itself and releases it in a strictly required dosage. In fact, an artificial drug-producing organ appears inside the body, requiring neither injections nor other external interventions. The work was published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

The main achievement of the study was the solution to the problem of immune rejection, which has hampered the success of cell therapy for decades. Researchers have created a special “crystalline shield”. This shell protects the cells inside the implant from attacks by the immune system, preventing it from recognizing the device as a foreign object. Thanks to this protection, the system can operate reliably and continuously for several years. Successful trials in mice and primates have confirmed the viability of the device and the effectiveness of sugar regulation, paving the way for clinical trials in humans.

Scientists emphasize that the created platform has enormous potential that goes beyond the treatment of diabetes. This system can be adapted to treat a variety of chronic conditions that require chronic administration of biologics, including hemophilia and other metabolic or genetic diseases.

Study co-author Associate Professor Shadi Farah said: “If this technology is successfully translated into the clinic, it could radically change the way chronic diseases are treated, moving from multiple drug administrations to live, self-regulating therapies that work seamlessly within the body.”