IIT Guwahati develops an implantable bioartificial pancreas

The researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati have successfully created an implantable bioartificial pancreas model grown within a 3D silk scaffold. The bioartificial pancreas, which encapsulates insulin-producing cells, is capable of naturally producing insulin in a sustained manner.
If successful in animal and human trials, it can be used for treating people with type 1 diabetes. The silk scaffold was found to be biocompatible (not toxic to living tissue) as it did not trigger any immune reaction or cause any adverse reaction when implanted. In Type 1 diabetes, the pancreas produces little or no insulin. Insulin is a hormone needed to allow sugar (glucose) to enter cells to produce energy. The results were published in the journal ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering.