Therapeutic potential of human embryonic stem cells in type 2 diabetes mellitus

To evaluate the safety and efficacy of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) for the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Patients with a previous history of diabetes and its associated complications were enrolled and injected with hESC lines as per the defined protocol. The patients were assessed using Nutech functional score (NFS), a numeric scoring scale to evaluate the patients for 11 diagnostic parameters. Patients were evaluated at baseline and at the end of treatment period 1 (T1). All the parameters were graded on the NFS scale from 1 to 5. Highest possible grade (HPG) of 5 was considered as the grade of best improvement.

Overall, 94.8% of the patients showed improvement by at least one grade of NFS at the end of T1. For all the 11 parameters evaluated, 54% of patients achieved HPG after treatment. The four essential parameters (improvement in glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and insulin level, and fall in number of other oral hypoglycemic drugs with and without insulin) are presented in detail. For HbA1c, 72.6% of patients at the end of T1 met the World Health Organization cut off value, i.e., 6.5% of HbA1c. For insulin level, 65.9% of patients at the end of T1 were able to achieve HPG. After treatment, the improvement was seen in 16.3% of patients who required no more than two medications along with insulin. Similarly, 21.5% of patients were improved as their dosage regimen for using oral drugs was reduced to 1-2 from 5.

hESC therapy is beneficial in patients with diabetes and helps in reducing their dependence on insulin and other medicines.