The Breakthrough T1D Center of Excellence in Northern California is a cure accelerator and a high impact partnership between Stanford University and UCSF within the collaborative structure and support that are hallmarks of Breakthrough T1D. Investigators at the Center seek to better understand and target the interactions between the immune system and the beta cell, in an effort to deliver first-generation, stem cell-based cures for type 1 diabetes.
Islet transplantation has proven to be a viable cure for T1D, but it is not widely applicable due to its reliance upon organ donation, and the need to take immunosuppressive drugs for the patient’s lifetime. This Center will utilize innovative beta cell biology, immunology and a variety of other novel treatments to drive a cell replacement solution that is widely available to people with T1D and without the need for chronic immunosuppression.