Fight Against Diabetes Gets Grunt
Sydney Morning Herald
Thursday July 16, 1992
Researchers at Sydney's Prince of Wales and Prince Henry Hospitals are about to begin a three-year project to try to reverse diabetes in adult pigs using cells from the pancreas of pig foetuses.
If successful, the technique could be used for human diabetics around the world.
Dr Bernard Tuch, staff specialist in endocrinology and head of the pancreas transplant group at Prince of Wales, said the first year of research was made possible by a grant from Australia's biggest pig producer, Bunge Meat Industries Ltd, of Corowa.
Dr Roger Campbell, general manager technical services , of Bunge , said the research might lead to a value-added market for pigs.
The company finances other research programs but most of those concentrate on animal health and vaccines. "(It) certainly seems to have a lot of potential benefits for humans," Dr Campbell said.
Dr Tuch said the researchers would ideally like to use immature human foetal pancreas to transplant into humans, as was done on five patients in Sydney during the 1980s.
Those patients were all immunosuppressed because they had received kidney transplants.
But the major stumbling block from those results and data from other sources was that 12 or more foetal pancreases would be needed for every patient.
"The last thing we are talking about is encouraging abortions," Dr Tuch said.
"If this system is ever going to be used in the 80,000 insulin-diabetics in Australia then an alternative source of tissue is needed.
"The pig is probably the most readily available alternative source."
The impetus for the research was provided by previous work by post-doctoral fellow Dr Ann Simpson and data from other groups in Australia and overseas.
Monday marks the beginning of Diabetes Week when free testing will be available to try to detect some of the 250,000 undiagnosed diabetics in Australia. Most of those diabetics are non-insulin dependent and their condition can be treated with diet and exercise.
© 1992 Sydney Morning Herald