Babbage: How to cure type-1 diabetes

A new drug for type-1 diabetes has been licensed in America. Teplizumab is the first treatment for the condition since insulin began being used a century ago. It targets one of the root causes of this type of diabetes and can slow the onset of the disease. Better still, the drug could be the herald of a new era in treating the condition.Colin Dayan, a professor of clinical diabetes and metabolism at Cardiff University, tells “Babbage” producer Jason Hosken why immunotherapy could be a game-changing innovation for diabetes. Beth Baldwin and Harj Singh share personal stories of how the condition has affected their families. And Sanjoy Dutta, chief scientific officer of diabetes research charity JDRF, explains the potential pathways to finding a cure. Alok Jha hosts.For full access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions, subscribe at economist.com/podcastoffer and sign up for our weekly science newsletter at economist.com/simplyscience. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.