Technology Overview

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Diabetes can be induced by many causes among which is the loss of insulin production and secretion. Type 1 diabetes incurs a complete loss of insulin, therefore requiring insulin injection; in type 2 diabetes, the loss of insulin production is progressive, and may eventually require insulin therapy. For both forms of diabetes, restoring of normal insulin production and secretion would be ideal.

In order to cure type 1 diabetes, two fundamental aspects of the disease need to be addressed. First, turning off the misguided immune system attack on the insulin-producing -cells, which stops the autoimmune process, or protecting new Beta-cells from this ongoing attack (e.g. encapsulation). Next, restoring the body's ability to produce its own insulin, i.e. restoring new insulin-producing cells. This could be achieved in a few different ways:by generating these cells from other remaining healthy cells in the pancreas (regeneration); by artificially producing them in a lab; by obtaining them from other animals, then inserting them into the body (replacement); or by transplantation.

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Pancreas and islets transplantation do increase Beta-cell mass, however suffers from lack of donor organs limits the therapeutic potential of these treatments.

The expansion of Beta-cell mass from endogenous sources, either in vivo or in vitro, and the regeneration of pancreatic islets from pancreatic stem cells represent areas of increasing interest. However these approaches are associated with significant challenges and many years, if ever, may be required to make them becoming generally available.

On the other hand, it is of paramount importance to improve diabetes treatment in order to control hyperglycemia, especially in type 1 diabetes, thus reducing the risk of diabetic complications. Such risks include, among others, cardiac risk; it is well established that diabetes patients have a 15X death rate following heart attack compared to non diabetic patients.

TwoToBiotech has developed a novel mAb that can protect Beta-cells against T-cells invasion, and thereby inhibit the development of Type 1 diabetes. This mAb was also found to be very efficient for treatment of Type 2 diabetes.

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Another molecule developed by the company is a novel human peptide which can increase the amount of Insulin in the pancreas which is very beneficial for treatment of diabetes type 2. In two mice models of diabetes type 2, db/db mice and mice treated with STZ, the peptide was found to be very beneficial.