InSphero researches new diabetes treatment with partners

The biotech company InSphero, based in Schlieren, has entered into a partnership with the New York-based research organization Breakthrough T1D (T1D) and the Center for Diabetes Research at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB). This collaboration, which is funded by Breakthrough T1D, aims to develop new treatment strategies for type 1 diabetes that focus on protecting and preserving the vital insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas, according to a press release.

Type 1 diabetes is a serious disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's own beta cells, resulting in insufficient insulin production, according to the InSphero press release. The innovative approach of the new collaboration aims to protect these cells from attack by the immune system by focusing on the beta cells' own mechanisms. Decio L. Eizirik, an expert in beta cell research at the ULB Center for Diabetes Research, is InSphero's scientific partner in this project, it continues.

"Unlike traditional approaches that focus exclusively on the immune system, our strategy targets the misguided dialog between the immune system and beta cells in T1D," Burcak Yesildag, Vice President of Islet Biology at InSphero, is quoted as saying. By bringing together InSphero's technology and ULB's scientific expertise, it is hoped that "significant breakthroughs in the fight against T1D can be achieved," Jay Tinklepaugh, lead scientist at Breakthrough T1D, is quoted as saying.

InSphero is a spin-off from the University of Zurich (UZH) and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH), based in the Bio-Technopark Schlieren-Zurich. ce/gba