BIOL 488: Therapeutic Intracellular Delivery of Insulin via Bacterial Secretion Systems to Treat Diabetes

Common Types of Diabetes:

Type 1 – autoimmune disorder that prevents the body from making enough insulin

•Usually diagnosed early in life (< 30 years old)

•Treated with insulin injections

Type 2 – the body can’t use insulin properly

•Usually diagnosed later in life (> 30 years old)

•Treated with changes in diet, exercise, and insulin injections

1 in 4 diabetics admit to rationing their insulin at some point

How can probiotics help insulin production? A modified E. coli strain (Nissle 1917) was able to secrete insulinotropic proteins to induce insulin production.