US history and US govt are required courses in most high schools. The information they teach is generally what would be on the citizenship test

*we’ll know next month

The pancreas is not really stable enough to be implanted in at all. Other organs you’re imagining like liver, stomach, heart, etc. have a solid lining that can be cut open and stitched back together. The pancreas is more like a cluster of loose cells with veins throughout and held together by a very thin, tissue paper lining. If you try to open it and insert cells, you’re not going to be able to put it back together.

That’s why cells are usually put in the liver, which has a large vein going directly to the pancreas. Close proximity and high blood supply. Implanting in the pancreas will likely never be an option unless you can drastically reduce the volume of cells.

Our lab was working on implanting the stem cells on a porous scaffold in the fat pad of the stomach as an alternative

Unfortunately, that doesn’t necessarily negate the requirement for immunosuppresors or some other kind of immuno protection. If it is Type 1 diabetes, the person originally became diabetic because the immune system saw certain markers on the beta cells (insulin producing cells) as a threat. So, if you recreate the beta cells, there is still a possibility that it will happen again. You are fighting your own immune system. Someone in our lab was studying encapsulation of cells to create a protective barrier around them for this very issue

If the person was Type 2, this might be less of a risk since type 2 can also be due to high insulin resistivity. There are a lot of other factors involved, though, it’s not straightforward

I literally worked in a research lab working on islet cell therapies for diabetes in the US. This has actually been done many times before with cells from cadavers. It has been successful, although most the of the time the person reverts back after a few years

The issues we were trying to solve in the lab were

1. Finding a good place to transplant where the cells will last: Implanting in the hepatic region (liver), which is the most common place to implant, is toxic to the cells over time hence only lasting 3-5 years. The cells need a really good blood supply and the volume you’re transplanting can’t be easily transplanted in the pancreas or kidney capsules (where many successful studies were performed in mice and rats)

2. Being able to consistently make a high volume of stem cells that are fully grown into insulin producing cells: Cadaver cells usually require 3-5 donors for 1 person and require the receiver to be on lifelong immunosuppresors due to the immune response. Depending on the kind of stem cells, the patient may still even need immunosuppresors due to the cell type you’re converting from

All this the say - the article says nothing about where the cells where transplanted, where they came from, or whether the person has Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes. Although it is still a feat, it is likely not the first time it has been done, and we’re still a long ways off from a cure

Dr. Death was about gross negligence in medicine and the failure of the medical system to prevent unqualified doctors from making it through the system. There’s no evidence that this study has anything to do with that

This title really overly praises him for 1) not doing much at all and 2) making changes that should have been made months ago

The bad part is that their healthcare system still has to deal with the rising number of cases, but it’s not like there has been an unexpected spike from anything unusual

For those who dont feel like reading the whole article, here’s why:

“Much of the increase in kidney failure is caused by an ageing population. When age is taken into account, the number of people with kidney failure as a proportion of the population has remained fairly stable over the past decade, according to data from the registry.”

I dont agree with their views, but I really dont think it’s affecting their demand as much as you think. Lines are always insanely long - they just move them through very efficiently. By taking orders/payment as soon as you enter the line and knowing which car to give the food to when you get close to the window, the line never stops moving

I feel like Jimmy johns and chick fil a are the only truly fast restaurants anymore. For JJ you do have to go inside, but they often make your sandwich and complete payment in less than a minute, maybe 5 minutes max.

Meanwhile I’ve been to other drive throughs where even with very few people in line, it somehow takes 10/15 mins to get your meal. Plus, it’s often incorrectly made and expensive

New fear unlocked

What do you even mean by this? Those issues are important, but familial hypercholemia also affects 34 million people. A treatment like this would be helpful for people across all classes