Type 1 Diabetes affect 40 million patients around the world. The majority of these patients are children and adolescents who have to cope with lifelong complications. The total estimated financial burden for T1D is $14.9 billion in the U.S. each year alone.
This is a demonstration of an implanted Bioartificial Pancreas in a large mammal (pig) designed to treat Type 1 Diabetes. See the paper
Integrated BioDesign Lab
Shang Song lab at University of Arizona focuses on integrating advanced engineering design methods and cell therapies to create new medical therapeutics. We are fundamentally interested in designing new “experiences” for cells to change their behavior, and use this knowledge to develop better therapeutics and treatment methods for patients.
Why our lab?
Biomedical engineering encompasses a wide range of biological scale: from molecular and subcellular level to cell, tissue, organ, and whole organism. Dr. Shang Song’s research work span different biological scales: from manipulating cellular microenvironment, to building tissue and organ constructs, and evaluating their regenerative and translational potential in diseased models. The direct experience working at different length scale and diseased models help us recognize unique challenges and needs in bridging the gap for translating new discoveries to improve human health.
Why now?
Our lab takes advantage of the convergence between modern advances in engineering methodologies and maturing understanding of human cells and tissues to develop new therapeutic strategies. By working at the interface of these technologies, we can form innovative ideas to achieve a greater impact on clinical needs and human health.