Promising medical revolution

LARRY BARZELAI

New figures show that 350 million people worldwide now suffer from diabetes, according to a recently published study by the World Health Organization and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. These numbers are increasing dramatically every year. The race is on for long-term effective treatments and cures.

In researching for a physicians’ trip to Israel, I’ve discovered lots of information about incredible technological innovations taking place in Israel. The following, representing just a few advancements, describes research that may make the diabetic’s life easier in the future.

The company Oramed is in the process of developing a capsule containing insulin that could replace the regular injections that many diabetics perform several times a day. The company, based in Jerusalem, is conducting various trials to test the efficacy and side effects of this product. A recent multi-centred study in South Africa was viewed as successful.

Another way to treat diabetes is to prevent the absorption of glucose. The Israeli company MetaCure has developed an implantable gastric stimulator with electrodes that attach to the outer stomach muscles. This device, called DIAMOND, enhances stomach muscle contractions, causing the patient to feel full more quickly during a meal. It also influences the release of hormones that affect feelings of satiety.

The installation of the device is accomplished through simple laparoscopic surgery. The device needs a 45-minute weekly recharging, which can be accomplished when the patient is sitting down in a chair. According to Lior Teitelbaum, MetaCure’s business development director, “We have over 230 patients implanted with it worldwide, and we’ve seen that the system reduces blood glucose levels significantly.”

Interesting research is also being done for the treatment of blindness, a common condition in diabetes. Nano Retina, a company located in Herzliyah, was recently featured in the Jewish Independent (“Bionic eye technology,” June 24, 2011). The company has developed an implant device, the size of a grain of rice, which can be inserted into the retina in a 30-minute procedure. This device “turns into an artificial retina that melds to the neurons in the eye. It is activated by the wearer using special eyeglasses, transforming natural light into an electrical impulse that stimulates the neurons to send images to the brain.” Nano Retina advertises that this device can increase visual acuity by a factor of 10.

For people with a complete loss of vision, Prof. Amir Amedi of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has developed a technique enabling people to “see” with the use of sophisticated sound perception. The vOICe system is comprised of a webcam that captures images and software that uses a complicated algorithm to convert those images into sounds. According to Amedi, “The images become sounds of varying frequency, volume, length and strength. Together, these sounds form a mathematical three-dimensional representation of the objects.” The patient is taught to interpret these various sounds and thus be able to “see” his immediate environment.

While blindness is common in diabetes, vascular blockages are also frequent sources of disability. At the present time, risky surgery is often the only way to relieve these blockages. However, a new Israeli technology makes use of genetic engineering to allow the body to produce new blood vessels that can bypass obstructed arteries.

Prof. Moshe Fligelman and Prof. Basil Lewis are leading this study that is taking place at the Carmel Medical Centre in Haifa. Healthy blood vessel tissue is taken from the patient and engineered in the laboratory. The engineered tissue is then returned to the body at the site of the problem. Within a few weeks, the body produces new blood vessels, which bypass the obstructions and create new, healthy pathways.

One of the more promising areas of research involves stem-cell technology, in which Israeli scientists have consistently been at the forefront. Dr. Suheir Assady, director of the department of nephrology at the Rambam Health-Care Campus in Haifa, spoke in Vancouver in April along with her colleague Dr. Karl Skorecki, a visit which was featured in the April 1, 2011, issue of the Jewish Independent. Assady published an article in the Israeli Medical Association Journal in 2009, describing the stem-cell research being done, much of which is conducted in Israel. These studies use stem-cell technology to create beta cells, which are the insulin-secreting cells of the pancreas. Once this process is established, the next step is implanting them into diabetics to create a new pancreas.

While nobody can predict the future, it is likely that much of the above research will, in time, lead to dramatic changes in how we treat diabetes.

Why is so much innovative research happening in Israel?

Dan Senor and Saul Singer have co-authored Start-up Nation, in which they describe the technological revolution happening in Israel. One of the foremost reasons they offer is that Israeli researchers and scientists are taught and encouraged to question everything. This occurs more broadly in society, with children in school, soldiers in the army and in Israeli life in general. Another reason is that Israeli society it made up of diverse groups of immigrants with new approaches and new ideas. And the primary reason Senor and Singer offer is Israel’s need to protect itself from hostile neighbors and the need to be a step ahead of them in developing technologies for protection, fueling innovation and encouraging investment in research and development.

Dr. Larry Barzelai is leading a tour for physicians to Israel this November and invites others to join the trip, which will focus on Israel’s medical technological advances. Contact him at [email protected] or consult the travel agency at keshetisrael.co.il.

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