Diabetes Type 1 Vaccine to Release Soon; May Prevent Disease in Next 10 Years

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A vaccine for Type 1 Diabetes is being developed by scientists in the UK. There is hope that the vaccine will be able to prevent diabetes in 10 years.  

Diabetes UK's director for the research, Dr. Alasdair Rankin said, "This research is hugely exciting because it has the potential to transform the lives of hundreds of thousands of people living with type 1 diabetes, as well as leading us towards a longed-for cure."  

According to Express, Diabetes UK has given over £4.4million for the research. The funding was also supported by Tesco and the JDRF diabetes research charity. 

Professor Colin Dayan, research head at Cardiff University, said, "This funding has already led to a bold new collaboration between UK diabetes scientists and will provide an immense boost for this field." 

According to the Independent, the diabetes vaccine studies will be split into four groups, with participation from King's College London, Cardiff University, and Imperial College.  

Lead by Professor Dayan, Cardiff University is responsible for the Type 1 "immunotherapy" trials at UK hospitals, states Express. As part of the studies, doctors and researchers will also be trained to handle the trials by Cardiff University.  

On the other hand, Imperial College is assigned to gather people with Type 1 diabetes to partake in the trials being conducted by King's College, reports the Independent. Express states that Professor Desmond Johnston will lead the team based at Imperial College.  

Meanwhile, King's College seems to be the most involved with the development of the vaccine. Research at the college will be lead by Professor Mark Peakman.

The Independent states that King's College will be working on a prototype vaccine for children and teenager living with diabetes. Most sites seem to suggest that the prototype will be developed through trials with the help of participants gathered by the Imperial College.  

King's College will be setting up special laboratories to study the trials and the impact of the treatments given to the participants, states Express.  

Even though the research has started, it will take time to develop the vaccines. Dr. Rankin states, "None of this will be easy or happen overnight. The first vaccines will probably help people to delay the onset of Type 1 diabetes rather than preventing it entirely. But even this would help to reduce the risk of serious complications, such as stroke, blindness and heart attacks."  

Professor Dayan adds, "Within a year or two we will see many more children and adults taking part in this research. Within four years we expect to see results from studies of more than six potential treatments and within 10 years we hope to see the first vaccine therapies delivered to patients in the clinic."