💉 Stem Cells Achieve World-First Reversal of Type 1 Diabetes

Welcome AI & Healthcare enthusiasts!

A 25-year-old woman with type 1 diabetes now produces her own insulin after a breakthrough stem cell transplant. Meanwhile, AI is identifying drug candidates for 17,000 rare diseases and achieving 84% accuracy in detecting hypertension through voice recordings.

Let’s dive in!

Victor

TODAY’S MENU

• Stem Cells Achieve World-First Reversal of Type 1 Diabetes

• AI Finds New Drugs for 17,000 Rare Diseases

• New Nasal Spray Could Block COVID-19 and Flu Before They Infect You

• AI Detects Hypertension Through Voice Recordings

• Coffee May Lower Dementia Risk in People with High Blood Pressure

• Everything Else You Should Know this Week

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  Read time: under 8 minutes

BREAKTHROUGH TREATMENTS

Stem Cells Achieve World-First Reversal of Type 1 Diabetes

For the first time ever, a 25-year-old woman with type 1 diabetes is now producing her own insulin following a stem cell transplant. Researchers from Peking University used stem cells derived from the woman’s own body to grow insulin-producing islets, which were transplanted into her abdominal muscles.

Key Details:

• The stem cells were reprogrammed into insulin-producing islets and transplanted into her abdominal muscles, allowing doctors to monitor the cells more effectively than traditional transplants into the liver.

• Three months post-surgery, the woman began producing enough insulin naturally, and her blood sugar levels have remained stable for over a year, with no dangerous spikes or drops.

• Experts like Dr. James Shapiro from the University of Alberta are astonished, describing the results as a “complete reversal of diabetes,” a significant breakthrough for patients who previously relied heavily on insulin.

Why It Matters: This case offers immense hope for the millions of people living with type 1 diabetes worldwide. If replicated on a larger scale, this stem cell therapy could revolutionize diabetes treatment, providing a more permanent solution than insulin injections and reducing the need for donor organs.

AI + BIOLOGY

AI Finds New Drugs for 17,000 Rare Diseases

Researchers at Harvard Medical School have developed an AI tool called TxGNN that identifies drug candidates for diseases lacking treatments. The tool uses data from existing medicines to find new therapeutic options.

Key Details:

• TxGNN identified drug candidates for over 17,000 diseases, many of which lack any approved treatments.

• The tool analyzed data from nearly 8,000 medicines, including FDA-approved and experimental drugs.

• It was 50% more effective than other AI models in identifying drug candidates and 35% more accurate in predicting contraindications, a specific situation in which a medicine should not be used.

• TxGNN finds common genomic patterns across diseases to suggest treatments for those without options.

Why it matters: By making TxGNN freely available, Harvard is enabling clinicians worldwide to leverage AI for faster drug discovery in rare diseases, closing a critical gap in treatment development. With over 7,000 rare diseases affecting 300 million people worldwide—and only 5-7% having approved treatments—this tool could play a key role in accelerating the development of much-needed therapies.

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DISEASE PREVENTION

New Nasal Spray Could Block COVID-19 and Flu Before They Infect You

Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital have developed a nasal spray that could protect against a wide range of viral and bacterial infections, including COVID-19 and influenza. The spray, tested in preclinical studies, forms a gel in the nasal cavity, trapping and neutralizing pathogens before they can infect the body.

Key Details:

• The spray, called PCANS, is made from ingredients already approved for use in nasal sprays by the FDA.

• It works by forming a gel-like matrix in the nasal cavity, which traps respiratory droplets, immobilizes the germs, and neutralizes them.

• In a 3D-printed replica of the human nose, PCANS captured twice as many droplets as mucus alone.

• Preclinical tests in mice showed the spray blocked almost 100% of viruses and bacteria, including influenza and COVID-19, reducing viral load in the lungs by >99.99%.

Why It Matters: If proven effective in humans, this spray could offer a new, non-invasive way to prevent respiratory infections. In a world still grappling with COVID-19 and seasonal flu, PCANS could become a key tool for public health protection. The researchers are also exploring its potential to block allergens, offering new possibilities for allergy relief.

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AI DIAGNOSIS

AI Detects Hypertension Through Voice Recordings

Canadian researchers from Klick Labs have used AI to detect signs of hypertension through voice recordings, offering a new, accessible method for early diagnosis.

Key Details:

• Nearly 250 patients recorded their voices up to six times per day for two weeks using a proprietary mobile app developed by Klick Labs.

• The app analyzed hundreds of biomarkers, some beyond human detection, to spot signs of hypertension.

• The app showed 84% accuracy for detecting elevated blood pressure in women and 77% in men for a systolic blood pressure (SBP) ≥ 135 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) ≥ 85 mmHg.

• For a higher blood pressure threshold (SBP ≥ 140 mmHg or DBP ≥ 90 mmHg), the accuracy was 63% for women and 86% for men.

Why It Matters: AI keeps on finding unusual associations. Analyzing voice data could make detecting hypertension easier, leading to earlier treatment and reducing risks like heart attacks, kidney failure and dementia. Klick Labs is also exploring AI’s potential in detecting other conditions, including type 2 diabetes, with promising findings published recently.

PREVENTIVE HEALTH

Coffee May Lower Dementia Risk in People with High Blood Pressure

A study from Ningxia Medical University in China has found that regular coffee drinkers with high blood pressure may have a lower risk of developing dementia. The researchers analyzed health data from the UK Biobank, which includes over 500,000 people.

Key Findings:

• People with hypertension are more likely to develop dementia than those without the condition.

• Regular consumption of coffee or tea (half to one cup per day) was associated with a lower risk of dementia in hypertensive individuals.

• The type of coffee mattered—those who ground their own beans saw a greater reduction in risk.

• Prior research suggests that coffee’s ability to reduce inflammation and promote blood-brain barrier health may explain the lower dementia risk.

Why It Matters: Although this study shows a link between caffeine consumption and a reduced dementia risk in people with hypertension, it is based on correlation. More research is needed to better understand the connection and its potential implications for preventing dementia.

Must-Read AI Healthcare News This Week

Huawei builds smart hospitals: At HUAWEI CONNECT 2024, Huawei launched an all-optical hospital solution, boosting medical imaging efficiency with high-speed networks, AI integration, and improved storage for seamless healthcare operations.

FDA clears Neuralink brain chip to restore vision: Neuralink’s “Blindsight” device, aiming to restore vision for blind patients, receives FDA breakthrough designation, accelerating development for those without eyes or optic nerves.

Healthcare robotics startup Mendaera raises $73M: This Series B funding aims to develop a handheld robotic platform for mainstream medical procedures, integrating AI, robotics, and real-time imaging.

GE HealthCare unveils new oncology AI tools: At ASTRO 2024, GE HealthCare introduced innovations like Intelligent Radiation Therapy (iRT) and Revolution™ RT, designed to streamline cancer treatment workflows and improve precision in radiation therapy using AI.

An ultrathin graphene brain implant was just tested in a person: A Spanish biotech company, inBrain Neuroelectronics, sees the carbon material as a way to power the brain-computer interfaces of the future.

FSU Nursing faunches first AI-Focused Master’s Degree: Florida State University’s College of Nursing introduces a new Master of Science in Nursing with a concentration in AI, merging technology and healthcare to enhance patient care.

Komodo Health unveiled MapAI, an AI assistant that enables healthcare professionals to analyze large datasets using conversational language, simplifying research and accelerating decision-making in drug trends and disease tracking.

Qure.ai nets $65M for foundational AI: The company said it will use its fresh funds to fuel its US expansion, invest in AI models, and pursue med-tech acquisitions. The company’s AI solutions, deployed in 90 countries, assist in diagnosing critical conditions like TB, lung cancer, and stroke.

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