Dr. Camillo Ricordi may be a familiar name to anyone who has, or has known someone, with type 1 diabetes. As director of the Diabetes Research Institute, Ricordi has spent his career studying the disease, which can be debilitating for patients, and which requires them to rely on daily insulin injections and glucose monitoring.
In a recent episode of Cell & Gene: The Podcast, Dr. Ricordi sat down to discuss advances in the treatment of type 1 diabetes, as well as the challenges that persist and the current state of clinical research for the disease. Alongside X-Therma CEO Xiaoxi Wei, Ricordi also explored the limitations of traditional cryopreservation for both the pancreas itself and for islets of Langerhans, pancreatic cells that can be infused in portal veins within a patient’s liver, where they can become active and produce insulin. Finally, the pair talked about how advancements in cryopreservation technologies have the potential to pave the way for better, more accessible diabetes treatment.
