Cross posted from Nature’s The Great Beyond blog.
An artificial pancreas that can help control the havoc-wreaking diabetes causing hormones has been developed and successfully tested.
The system was developed at Boston University (BU), and consists of a blood glucose monitor and insulin pump hooked up to a laptop that runs a programme to control the levels of the important hormones insulin and glucagon. Administering insulin to a type 1 diabetes patient always carries a risk of hypoglycaemia with it. But by running an algorithm that monitors blood sugar levels and is capable of administering both blood-sugar raising and lowering hormones – glucagon and insulin respectively – this system seems to remove that risk.
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