Remaining Challenges and Clinical Perspectives

Unlike other potential targets of future stem cell approaches, there is already a current cell therapy for the treatment of type I diabetes. Indeed, islet transplantation has proven successful in inducing insulin independence for at least 1 year after the procedure. Progress in this discipline during the past 20 years has paved the way for stem cell-based therapies. Here we review the current state of the art of islet transplantation and examine the challenges that need to be addressed before a transition is made to stem cell-derived insulin-producing cells, with particular emphasis on the immunological aspects (rejection and autoimmunity) of type I diabetes.