Can Genetically Modified Lettuce Cure Diabetes?POSTED: 3:31 pm EDT November 2,
2007 The following is a transcript of a report by medical editor Marilyn Brooks that first aired Nov. 2, 2007, on WTAE Channel 4 Action News at 5 p.m. Is it possible the key to curing diabetes could be in your refrigerator or in your favorite salad?Experiments with genetically modified lettuce have raised the hopes of one researcher.A central Florida professor is alone in his belief that specially treated lettuce might lead to a cure for type 1 diabetes.Three-year-old Zackary Treese had surgery to remove his adenoids and put in ear tubes. His mother brought him to Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh from Altoona for the surgery, because four months ago, Zack was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes."I thought he had a urinary tract infection," said Zack's mother, Lisa Treese. "He just started peeing everywhere."Right now, Treese is struggling with reality: insulin injections six times a day and complete changes in the family's eating plan.Even so, she believes diabetes research will one day relieve her burden."I think he has a better chance of being OK when he's older," said Treese.Could that chance come from lettuce?Dr. Henry Daniel of the University of Central Florida believes it would come from genetically modified lettuce grown in his lab at UCS."This would be not only a cure, but it would also be an inexpensive cure," said Daniel.A leaf is placed in a machine and then injected with the human gene for insulin. Daniel said it then produces human insulin."I've been so stunned by the number of e-mails and phone calls I've received," said Daniel. "I have received thousands."The attention came after he said he gave his insulin producing lettuce to diabetic mice. Daniel said after eight weeks of treatment, the mice were normal."Once this autoimmune disorder was cured, the beta cells came back alive, produced normal levels of insulin," said Daniel. "There was no need to take any more insulin."Daniel said his lettuce cannot only prevent diabetes before symptoms appear but treat the disease in later stages.His research is published in Plant Biotechnology, but it is not published in any real medical journals, so WTAE Channel 4 medical editor Marilyn Brooks called a few experts around the country to ask them what they thought, including one premier researcher at Children's Hospital.Dr. Massimo Trucco has spent nearly 30 years trying to unravel the diabetic puzzle. He said Daniel's research is believable to a degree"The pieces can still be immunogenic, so you can do a sort of treatment before the onset of the disease, but when you are already diabetic and to avoid the insulin injection, that is total BS," said Trucco. "You cannot do that."Daniel grinds his lettuce to a fine green powder"The medicine will be in the form of a capsule," said Daniel.And that's the problem said Trucco. Insulin in any form cannot get into the bloodstream from the stomach. It would be digested."It would not have a physiological function then," said Trucco. "It would be a broken enzyme, so we cannot use."Others agree. Still, Daniel is planning human trials of his lettuce. Related Links: More County NewsGet RSS | E-Mail Alerts Copyright 2008 by ThePittsburghChannel. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
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