WIKIMEDIA, TONY HISGETTIn people with type 1 diabetes, an incurable disease diagnosed early in life, the pancreas is deficient in producing insulin. There's been some idea that stress responses from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) in pancreatic beta cells are involved, particularly the unfolded protein response. In Science Translational Medicine this week (November 13), scientists show that tamping down the ER stress response with a compound found in bear bile can slow the development of type 1 diabetes in mice.
“The study is exciting because it suggests that improving ER function before the onset of disease could reduce [type 1 diabetes] incidence,” said lead author Feyza Engin, a researcher at the Harvard School of Public Health, in a press release.
The compound, tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA), has been used for centuries in traditional Chinese medicine to treat a variety of ailments, and it was often sourced from the bile of...
Correction: The headline and article have been modified to reflect readers' comments that the original language suggested that the study used bear bile. The Scientist regrets the error.
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