University of Virginia (UVA) received a $3.4 million grant from NIH to turn an ordinary smart phone into an artificial pancreas that will transform the lives of people with Type 1 diabetes. The grant will fund a new network approach to artificial pancreas design using distributed computing between local and cloud systems to allow for the real-time adjustment of insulin delivery based on the individual need.
The NIH grant funding is now enabling UVA researchers to implement a new network approach to the artificial pancreas system known as the “Diabetes Assistant” system. The team has tested the artificial pancreas system in successful outpatient trials in Virginia, California, and in Europe.
The device consists of a reconfigured smart phone running advanced algorithms linked wirelessly with a blood glucose monitor and an insulin pump while communicating with internet services in real-time. Clinicians at UVA and Stanford will test the artificial pancreas in both adults and children.
The system will not only monitor and regulate blood-sugar levels automatically but after reporting to a remote-monitoring site, the system will link the user with assistance via telemedicine as needed. The grant funding will also be used to fund three clinical trials at UVA and Stanford University.
“This project approaches the artificial pancreas not as a single device but as a network of local and global services working seamlessly together towards the optimal control of diabetes.” said Boris Kovatchev PhD, Director of the UVA Center for Diabetes Technology at the University of Virginia, School of Medicine.
Initially, the Artificial Pancreas Project brought together researchers from UVA, Stanford University, University of California at Santa Barbara, Montpellier University Hospital in France, and the Universities of Padova and Pavia in Italy. Also, support for the artificial pancreas project was obtained from Paul and Diane Manning of Charlottesville Virginia, the Frederick Banting Foundation of Richmond, and by the JDRF Artificial Pancreas Project.