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Abstract
Transplantation of allogeneic islets of Langerhans, which include the insulin-producing β cells of the endocrine pancreas, holds curative potential for type 1 diabetes (T1D). However, protecting the allograft from the host immune system has long been a challenge impeding wider use of this therapy. Inducing mixed hematopoietic chimerism via allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) can achieve long-lasting donor-specific immune tolerance, but the toxicities of conventional HSCT conditioning agents limit the use of this approach. In this issue of the JCI, Bhagchandani et al. have used the JAK1/2 inhibitor baricitinib to optimize a nonmyeloablative antibody-based HSCT conditioning regimen, achieving multilineage hematopoietic engraftment, which enabled curative islet allotransplantation in a mouse model of T1D.
Authors
Stephen P. Persaud, John F. DiPersio
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ISSN: 0021-9738 (print), 1558-8238 (online)