It seems that if there is no new research news from the Faustman lab
then there is no dialogue on this Yahoo group.

--- In nathanfaustmantrials@yahoogroups.com, Gr8discjck
<gr8discjck@...> wrote:
>
> Has everyone given up hope? This group has been silent for a long
time.
> What gives?
>
> Gr8discjck <gr8discjck@...> wrote:
> http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2006/12/14/diabetes-
neuron.html#skip300x250
>
> Canadian scientists reverse diabetes in mice Last Updated:
Friday, December 15, 2006 | 8:04 AM ET CBC News
>
> Researchers working on a "breakthrough" discovery that identifies
the role of pain nerves in the cells that produce insulin have
prevented and reversed diabetes in mice.
> The work "led us to fundamentally new insights into the
mechanisms of this disease," Dr. Michael Salter, co-principal
investigator, said in a release Thursday that characterized the
findings as a breakthrough.
> Researchers concluded that the pain receptors don't secrete
enough neuropeptides — chemical elements found in the brain — to keep
the pancreatic islets, which produce insulin, working normally.
Without insulin, humans die, and even the current replacement
therapies cannot prevent side effects, such as heart attack,
blindness, stroke, loss of limbs and kidney failure.
> But by supplying neuropeptides to diabetes-prone mice, "the
research group learned how to treat the abnormality … and even
reversed established diabetes," without bad side effects, the release
said.
> "The major discovery was that removal of sensory neurons
expressing the receptor TRPV1 neurons in NOD (non-obese diabetic)
mice prevented islet cell inflammation and diabetes in most animals,"
Salter said.
> Continue Article
>
> Gr8discjck <gr8discjck@...> wrote:
>
>
>
> http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-11/mgh-
ndf112106.php
> New data from NIH lab confirms protocol to reverse type 1
diabetes in mice Data also support role for adult spleen cells in
regeneration of beta cells New data published in the Nov. 24 issue
of Science provide further support for a protocol to reverse type 1
diabetes in mice and new evidence that adult precursor cells from the
spleen can contribute to the regeneration of beta cells. In 2001 and
2003, researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH)
demonstrated the efficacy of a protocol to reverse of type 1 diabetes
in diabetic mice. Three studies from other institutions published in
the March 24, 2006 issue of Science confirmed that the MGH-developed
protocol can reverse the underlying disease but were inconclusive on
the role of spleen cells in the recovery of insulin-producing
pancreatic islets. The new data from a study performed at the
National Institutes of Health (NIH), published as a technical
comment, provides additional confirmation of the ability to
> reverse type 1 diabetes and on the role of the spleen cells in
islet regeneration.
> "This data from the NIH and the earlier studies have added
significantly to the understanding of how diabetes may be reversed,"
says Denise Faustman, MD, PhD, director of the Immunobiology
Laboratory at Massachusetts General Hospital, primary author of the
2001 and 2003 studies and co-corresponding author of the current
report. "It is still early, but it appears that there are multiple
potential sources for regenerating islets. As a research community we
should pursue all avenues. We're excited to see what will happen in
humans."
> In the 2001 and 2003 studies, Faustman and colleagues treated end-
stage nonobese diabetic (NOD) mice with Freund's complete adjuvant, a
substance that suppresses the activity of the immune cells that
destroy islets in type 1 diabetes. They also introduced donor spleen
cells to retrain the immune system not to attack islets and found
that the protocol not only halted the immune destruction caused by
diabetes but also allowed the insulin-producing pancreatic islet
cells to regenerate. Evidence indicated that the spleen cells were
the source of at least some of the regenerated islet cell and
hastened the restoration of blood sugar levels.
> The direct contribution of spleen cells to islet recovery, first
described in the 2003 study, is confirmed in the current work. NIH
researchers used cell lineage tracking in the form of Y-chromosomal
fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), in combination with
insulin staining, to follow the fate of male spleen cells
transplanted into female recipients. The female mice that received
male donor cells consistently showed Y-chromosome-positive insulin-
producing islet cells, indicating that the introduced spleen cells
contribute to islet recovery. The current study also showed that the
degree of spleen cell contribution is influenced by mouse age at the
start of treatment. Spleen cells appear to contribute to islet
recovery more in mice who are older and with more advanced diabetes
compared with younger mice with less advanced diabetes, in which
regeneration of remaining islets may be the dominant mechanism.
> ###
> The research to support the new data was conducted at the NIH
laboratory of Eva Mezey, MD, PhD, co-corresponding author of the
report. It was funded by the Sjogren's Syndrome Foundation, National
Institutes of Health/NIDCR intramural program, Canadian Institutes of
Health Research and Canada Research Chair. The three studies
published in March 2006 were supported by the Juvenile Diabetes
Research Foundation. Faustman's research at Massachusetts General
Hospital has been supported by The Iacocca Foundation, which is also
supporting a clinical trial program based on her research.
> Massachusetts General Hospital, established in 1811, is the
original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. The
MGH conducts the largest hospital-based research program in the
United States, with an annual research budget of nearly $500 million
and major research centers in AIDS, cardiovascular research, cancer,
computational and integrative biology, cutaneous biology, human
genetics, medical imaging, neurodegenerative disorders, regenerative
medicine, transplantation biology and photomedicine. MGH and Brigham
and Women's Hospital are founding members of Partners HealthCare
System, a Boston-based integrated health care delivery system.
>
>
>
> Scott Strumello <sstrumello@...> wrote:
> Similar to Joshua, I also questioned the use of BCG, but I
did read
> the references to why Dr. Faustman and company believe BCG has
> potential to work (kindly re-posted by Stacy Lavery). I believe her
> explanation is sufficient to warrant further investigation, as we
may
> now have more evidence to suggest appropriate dosages, how to
> administer, and above all, how to measure whether and how it is
> working, all things that the Israeli researchers did not have when
> their initial studies were undertaken.
>
> Although I believe that many people may blindly believe that this
> will be the definitive cure for their child, my suspicion is that
> these trials may reveal conditions when BCG will work, and perhaps
> when it will not, therefore adding to the knowledge on how to
correct
> autoimmune diseases, and under what circumstances -- all things
that
> we do not currently have, therefore I support further research.
>
> Having lived with type 1 diabetes for 30 years now, I have heard
all
> of these promises before, therefore I believe we should be more
> skeptical, but I do believe this is research that needs to be
> undertaken, the only difference is that I think we need to be
> realistic about what is likely to emerge from this research. Like
> Joshua, I would like to see more details from the research team so
> that expectations can be set realistically.
>
> Regards,
> Scott
>
> --- In nathanfaustmantrials@yahoogroups.com, Joshua Levy
> <joshualevy@> wrote:
> >
> >
> > Thanks very much for posting this! I hope that someone in
> Faustman's
> > lab will either add a reference to the exact study that cured
> someone
> > of type-1 diabetes using BCG (even during the honeymoon phase).
The
> > other quote that I saw made it very clear that their person did
not
> > have type-1 diabetes at the time of treatment. (But maybe there
is
> a
> > different person.) I suspect that the quote represents a
> confabulation
> > of different studies. But I would love to be proven wrong on that!
> >
> > In any case, I think that FAQ answer should be updated with an
exact
> > source (not the vague "in human studies").
> >
> > --- Stacy Lavery <stacy_lavery@> wrote:
> >
> > > Hi Joshua,
> > >
> > > I thought I remembered reading something to that effect also,
and
> I
> > > think I've found the quote to which she was referring. It
doesn't
> > > mention which human study by name here, but in context, it
sounds
> > > like it was the Israeli study since it mentions two more studies
> > > after it, which was the scenario described in the Scientific
> American
> > > article. She probably read both articles, and remembered both
> items
> > > together.
> > >
> > > It's under this link at Dr. Faustman's new website under FAQ:
> > > http://www.faustmanlab.com/FAQ.html
> > >
> > > Here's the whole item, with the item of interest bolded:
> > >
> > > 7. What is BCG? Is it safe? Why use it?
> > > Our human clinical trial program will begin with an evaluation
of
> > > bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), a generic drug with an
impeccable
> > > human safety profile that is currently approved for two
> indications-
> > > tuberculosis and cancer therapy. BCG has been administered to
over
> > > four billion people since coming to market over 80 years ago.
> Similar
> > > to the agent we used in mouse studies (CFA), BCG causes the
body
> to
> > > make a natural substance called TNF that helps regulate the
immune
> > > system.
> > >
> > > There is ample data to support the use of BCG in the human
> diabetes
> > > trials. BCG was used many years ago in early-stage diabetic
mice
> and
> > > prevented diabetes. Unfortunately, many compounds work in early-
> stage
> > > NOD mice, but do not work in late-stage diabetic mice or in
humans
> > > with advanced disease. BCG was also tried in the past in humans
> with
> > > new onset diabetes, prior to the knowledge of how BCG actually
> works
> > > in the body. In the human studies, one diabetic patient was
cured
> > > with a single dose of BCG, but two subsequent studies with a
> single
> > > dose of BCG showed no benefit.
> > >
> > > Compared to when many previous BCG trials were conducted 10
year
> ago,
> > > the way BCG induces one's own TNF to change disease is now
mapped
> in
> > > animal models and in some human disease. This allows for
> thoughtful
> > > translation of this intervention to a human trial. We think
these
> > > early trials of BCG in humans, although encouraging, could not
be
> > > advanced until we understood BCG's mechanism of action (what it
> does)
> > > and had a way to monitor the drug's effect in the blood. Think
> about
> > > this: If we did not know that insulin regulated blood sugars,
and
> if
> > > we did not know how to measure blood sugar, how could we tell
> whether
> > > insulin actually worked to help diabetics? In many ways, early
BCG
> > > trials can be seen as similar to injecting insulin without
knowing
> > > what it really does or how to measure its effects. One of our
> major
> > > laboratory efforts is to create a method to rapidly and
precisely
> > > count the disease-causing cells in human blood and to use this
> test
> > > to evaluate whether BCG can
> > > eliminate these cells, and at what dose.
> > >
> > > Only by conducting a clinical trial will we know if BCG will
> work. We
> > > chose to test BCG because the agent is readily available and it
> works
> > > in the human in a similar way (induction of TNF) as the agent we
> > > successfully used in the mouse (CFA). In addition, it is
> relatively
> > > easy to track the killing of the population of autoreactive T
> cells
> > > targeted by BCG, and we believe that this population of cells
may
> be
> > > the one responsible for the greatest amount of damage to the
> islets.
> > >
> > > Thanks,
> > > Stacy Lavery
> > > Team Maryland Captain, Join Lee Now Campaign
> > > Moderator, Nathan/Faustman Trials Yahoo Group
> > >
> > > ----- Original Message ----
> > > From: joshualevy <joshualevy@>
> > > To: nathanfaustmantrials@yahoogroups.com
> > > Sent: Monday, November 20, 2006 7:44:20 PM
> > > Subject: [nathanfaustmantrials] Re: Latest Newletter from the
lab
> > >
> > > --- In nathanfaustmantrial s@yahoogroups. com, "rmccully2000"
> > > <rmccully2000@ ...> wrote:
> > > >
> > > > I just read the lastest newsletter on Dr. Faustman's new
> website...
> > >
> > > > http://www.faustman lab.com/News/ FaustmanUpdateFa ll06.pdf
> > > >
> > > > In the Scientic American article about Dr. Faustman, she
> mentions
> > > an
> > > > Israeli study using BCG single dose at diagnosis as being
> partially
> > >
> > > > successful. Again in the above newsletter, she mentions that
one
> > > human
> > > > was cured using a single dose of BCG, although further
studies
> were
> > > not
> > > > as successful.
> > >
> > > I can not find any place where Dr Faustman said that any type-1
> has
> > > been cured using BCG. I looked in the newslatter, the SA
article,
> and
> > > another recently published newspaper article. Can you be more
> > > specific about where you saw this?
> > >
> > > I don't believe anyone has been cured using BCG. My doubts are
two
> > > fold: first, if even one person had actually been cured, every
> > > researcher would be all over it. They would be trying slightly
> higher
> > > doses, slightly lower doses, all kind of varients. Can you
imagine
> > > the newspaper articles? None of this happened, so I don't think
> the
> > > cure happened, either. My second reason is this quote below:
> > >
> > > "Since 1997, researchers in Israel have been injecting BCG, the
> > > compound Faustman uses, into a person who was expected to
develop
> > > diabetes. That patient has remained free of diabetes for seven
> years,
> > > said Naim Shehadeh, head of the pediatric diabetes clinic at the
> > > Technion Israel Institute of Technology. But researchers have
been
> > > unable to gain additional funding for tests on more people."
> > > Source: http://www.cureauto immunity. org/national% 20journal%
> > > 201-21-05. htm
> > > (about 60% down the page)
> > >
> > > Note that this person did not have diabetes.
> > >
> > > Joshua Levy
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> __________________________________________________________
> ______________
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>
>
>
>
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