Bioengineering human stem cell-derived beta cell organoids to monitor cell health in real time and improve therapeutic outcomes in patients

Minutia is an early-stage cell therapy company with the goal of developing a product that is a functional cure for people living with type 1 and insulin-dependent type 2 diabetes. Minutia has a proprietary protocol to differentiate human pluripotent stem cells into insulin-producing cells that can reverse diabetic phenotypes. One of the key differentiators at Minutia is the ability to monitor transplanted cells using gold-based nanoparticles that are co-transplanted with the cells. Such nanoparticles emit a unique signal that can be measured non-invasively and in real time, providing transplant teams with the tools needed to visualize what happens to the cells after they have been transplanted into patients. Today, there is no visibility into the graft after islet replacement therapy, and the only metrics that provide any information about successful engraftment are monitoring blood glucose and insulin levels – often delayed and always invasive methods to evaluate success. Minutia’s gold-based NanoTracker technology provides rapid feedback about the graft, and transcutaneous optical monitor reduces the burden of discomfort on the patient. Through this grant, Minutia has successfully moved from a research-based setting into a clinically relevant space by demonstrating success with cells that are appropriate for transplantation in patient populations – we have transferred our foundational differentiation protocol to a clinically relevant GMP grade human stem cell line that can be taken to the clinic and can form part of Minutia’s final cell therapy product. We have also developed several nanosensors that can signal cell stress after transplantation through a bi-modal state change in response to intracellular biomarkers. In the future, we will continue our efforts to transplant functional cells in pre-clinical models and improve transplantation outcomes by using readouts from the NanoTrackers as indicators of success.