October 8, 2026
Last Friday marked the end of the 62nd annual European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) conference held in Milan, Italy. EASD is one of Europe's largest diabetes conferences, and this year’s gathering drew over 14,000 researchers, corporations, and scientific leaders from around the world to discuss the latest developments in the field. The conference featured over 2,000 presentations and 1,400 abstracts, covering all forms of diabetes.
Although most discussions addressed type 2 diabetes, several noteworthy news items focused solely on T1D were presented at the conference.
Below are the top T1D highlights from EASD 2026, discussing five key T1D research highlights and the two largest general T1D topics.
T1D Top 5 Research Highlights
Researchers presented a variety of interim preclinical and clinical results focused specifically on type 1 diabetes. Five presentations stand out: two with clinical results and three preclinical.
Two of the highlights, Century Therapeutics and Evotec, aim to deliver a full Practical Cure.
Clinical Research
Celregen Therapeutics (Hangzhou, China)
Celregen presented six-month results for its cell replacement therapy. The project, CRG-002, uses iPSC-derived islets to directly replace those lost in the T1D autoimmune attack. The phase I trial currently uses full-body immunosuppression and is not a full Practical Cure.
These trial results are noteworthy, suggesting CRG-002 could provide another viable source of insulin-producing cells, adding a new competitor to the mix. Results from patient one:
- Baseline time in range (TIR) reached 96.9% at week twenty-four.
- HbA1c fell from 9.4% to 6.0% at week sixteen.
- The patient achieved insulin independence by day 110.
SAB Biotherapeutics (Miami, FL)
SAB Biotherapeutics delivered multiple presentations on SAB-142, an immunomodulator designed to delay T1D indefinitely. The therapy is currently being tested in multiple clinical trials and populations, including newly diagnosed and honeymoon T1D cohorts.
Results:
- Average time in range increased from 73% at baseline to 85% on day 120 (end of study).
- Three out of four increased C-peptide compared to baseline.
- Insulin needs decreased over the study’s duration, but patients did not achieve insulin independence.
Preclinical Research
Century Therapeutics (Philadelphia, PA)
Century presented animal results and manufacturing capability data for CNTY-813, a cell replacement therapy utilizing gene-edited iPSC-derived beta cells. Century intends to submit an Investigational New Drug application to the FDA for a phase I/II clinical trial by the end of 2026 and present clinical data in the second half of 2027.
CNTY-813 is noteworthy because it hopes to provide both a sustainable cell supply and protection solution. If so in humans, it would be a full Practical Cure.
Results:
- Restored glycemic control in mice.
- The GMP manufacturing process for the cell line consistently exceeded purity criteria.
- Seemed to demonstrate that cold storage of iPSC cells does not affect potency, potentially enabling distribution at scale.
Evotec (Hamburg, Germany)
The company presented preclinical data for T1D therapy ILC (islet-like clusters), iPSCs gene-edited to avoid the immune attack. These gene-edited cells include a failsafe protocol: a ‘kill switch’ that eliminates cells that mutate into unintended cell types.
The goal is for ILCs to be a mass-produced, off-the-shelf cell replacement therapy. If the therapy progresses to clinical trials and is successful, it could be a full Practical Cure.
Results:
- Six mice achieved normalization of glucose levels.
- No signs of cancer mutation, cysts, or abnormal structures.
- A GMP-compliant editing strategy to scale ILCs using a 3D manufacturing process was established.
Adocia (Lyon, France)
Adocia presented an abstract detailing animal model results for AdoShell, a macroencapsulation device designed to protect transplanted beta cells from the immune system.
All sixty rodents (mice and rats) exhibited insulin secretion across different time frames, indicating the beta cells were effectively protected. AdoShell was tested with three different cell sources: insulin-producing human cells, stem cell-derived beta cells, and cells from other mice. Adocia also detailed its device manufacturing capabilities using GMP-compliant materials.
Major T1D Topics
Updated Guidance
The American Diabetes Association (ADA) and EASD updated their joint publication, The Management of Type 1 Diabetes in Adults, originally published in 2021. It covers all aspects of T1D in adulthood, including expanded recommendations for accurate diagnosis, mental health, derisking complications, and weight loss. A few key updates are below.
- Updated recommendations for screening for T1D in adults, including adding autoantibody, glucose, and C-peptide testing. This is in part due to 40% of adults over thirty being misdiagnosed as T2D.
- Emphasized the importance of patient-tailored diabetes self-management education and support (DSMES) to optimize physical and mental health outcomes.
- Discourages the term ‘LADA,’ which is reported to have no universally accepted criteria and may inhibit proper insulin therapy.
Early Detection
Many presenters focused on the importance of early detection of T1D.
- EDENT1FI Consortium, a European initiative involving collaborators from eight countries, presented results from multiple studies following over 140,000 children with two or more islet autoantibodies. The consortium advocates population-wide screening in Europe and recommends testing all children between ages 2-4, 6-8, and 10-15.
