Latest news with #Perrier
Korea Herald
4 days ago
- Health
- Korea Herald
ESOT Congress 2025: Scientists create functional human islets in 3D printing breakthrough for type 1 diabetes treatment
LONDON, June 29, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A team of international scientists has made a major leap forward in diabetes research by successfully 3D printing functional human islets using a novel bioink. Presented today at the ESOT Congress 2025, the new technology could pave the way for more effective and less invasive treatment for people living with type 1 diabetes. The breakthrough involved printing human islets – the insulin-producing clusters of cells in the pancreas – using a customised bioink made from alginate and decellularised human pancreatic tissue. This approach produced durable, high-density islet structures that remained alive and functional for up to three weeks, maintaining strong insulin responses to glucose and showing real potential for future clinical use. Traditional islet transplants are typically infused into the liver, a process that can result in significant loss of cells and limited long-term success. In contrast, the 3D-printed islets were designed to be implanted just under the skin, a simple procedure requiring only local anaesthesia and a small incision. This minimally invasive approach could offer a safer and more comfortable option for patients. "Our goal was to recreate the natural environment of the pancreas so that transplanted cells would survive and function better," explained lead author Dr. Quentin Perrier. "We used a special bioink that mimics the support structure of the pancreas, giving islets the oxygen and nutrients they need to thrive." The bioprinted islets stayed alive and healthy, with over 90% cell survival. They responded better to glucose than standard islet preparations, releasing more insulin when it was needed. By day 21, the islets showed a stronger ability to sense and react to blood sugar levels – an important sign that they could work well after being implanted. The constructs maintained their structure without clumping or breaking down, overcoming a common hurdle in earlier approaches. Additionally, the 3D-printed structures featured a porous architecture that enhanced the flow of oxygen and nutrients to the embedded islets. This design helped maintain cell health and promoted vascularisation, both of which are critical for long-term survival and function after transplantation. "This is one of the first studies to use real human islets instead of animal cells in bioprinting, and the results are incredibly promising," noted Dr. Perrier. "We're getting closer to creating an off-the-shelf treatment for diabetes that could one day eliminate the need for insulin injections."
Cision Canada
4 days ago
- Health
- Cision Canada
ESOT Congress 2025: Scientists create functional human islets in 3D printing breakthrough for type 1 diabetes treatment
LONDON, /CNW/ -- A team of international scientists has made a major leap forward in diabetes research by successfully 3D printing functional human islets using a novel bioink. Presented today at the ESOT Congress 2025, the new technology could pave the way for more effective and less invasive treatment for people living with type 1 diabetes. The breakthrough involved printing human islets – the insulin-producing clusters of cells in the pancreas – using a customised bioink made from alginate and decellularised human pancreatic tissue. This approach produced durable, high-density islet structures that remained alive and functional for up to three weeks, maintaining strong insulin responses to glucose and showing real potential for future clinical use. Traditional islet transplants are typically infused into the liver, a process that can result in significant loss of cells and limited long-term success. In contrast, the 3D-printed islets were designed to be implanted just under the skin, a simple procedure requiring only local anaesthesia and a small incision. This minimally invasive approach could offer a safer and more comfortable option for patients. "Our goal was to recreate the natural environment of the pancreas so that transplanted cells would survive and function better," explained lead author Dr. Quentin Perrier. "We used a special bioink that mimics the support structure of the pancreas, giving islets the oxygen and nutrients they need to thrive." The bioprinted islets stayed alive and healthy, with over 90% cell survival. They responded better to glucose than standard islet preparations, releasing more insulin when it was needed. By day 21, the islets showed a stronger ability to sense and react to blood sugar levels – an important sign that they could work well after being implanted. The constructs maintained their structure without clumping or breaking down, overcoming a common hurdle in earlier approaches. Additionally, the 3D-printed structures featured a porous architecture that enhanced the flow of oxygen and nutrients to the embedded islets. This design helped maintain cell health and promoted vascularisation, both of which are critical for long-term survival and function after transplantation. "This is one of the first studies to use real human islets instead of animal cells in bioprinting, and the results are incredibly promising," noted Dr. Perrier. "We're getting closer to creating an off-the-shelf treatment for diabetes that could one day eliminate the need for insulin injections."
Daily Tribune
6 days ago
- Business
- Daily Tribune
Nestle Waters fined in Switzerland for using carbon filters
AFP | Zurich Nestle Waters has been fined more than $610,000 for having used activated carbon filters on its Henniez bottled mineral water, Swiss public prosecutors announced Wednesday. The attorney general of western Switzerland's Vaud canton -- where Nestle has its headquarters, and where Henniez water is sourced -- accused the global food giant's bottled water division of 'misleading consumers' by having 'natural mineral water' on the label between 2008 and 2022. 'In doing so, the attorney general believes that the company obtained economic advantages by not complying with its legal labelling obligations,' a statement said, announcing the fine of 500,000 Swiss francs. In France, Nestle's bottled waters -- which include the iconic Perrier brand -- have been at the centre of a scandal since early 2024 regarding the use of micro-filtration processes. Banned for mineral waters, these processes were used by several producers, including Nestle, as revealed by the French newspaper Le Monde and Radio France. Shortly afterwards, Swiss newspaper Le Temps revealed that the Nestle Waters had also used carbon filters in the Henniez brand's factory in Switzerland. The attorney general's office said that the use of an activated carbon filtration process was discovered in the Henniez plant during an inspection in 2020. Some treatments are allowed, and the Vaud consumer office recommended that Nestle Waters apply for an exemption. However, this was refused, and the company was given until the end of 2022 to remove its carbon filter installation. A March 2023 inspection confirmed that the filter had indeed been decommissioned. But the consumer office sent a complaint to the cantonal public prosecutors, accusing Nestle Waters of having concealed the use of a carbon filter. The attorney general imposed a fine of 500,000 Swiss francs on Nestle, whose water brands last year generated sales of 3.2 billion Swiss francs ($4 billion). 'This amount takes into account the specific circumstances of the case, as the water produced presented no danger to consumers, either before or after filtration,' the statement said. 'It also takes into account the full and complete cooperation of Nestle Waters' management during the proceedings.' A Nestle Waters spokesperson told AFP the filters did not comply with Swiss regulations on mineral waters and have since been removed under the supervision of the authorities. 'We accept the ruling and express our regret for this past situation,' the spokesperson said.
LeMonde
25-06-2025
- Business
- LeMonde
Nestlé fined €533,000 in Switzerland for using banned filters in mineral water
Nestlé Waters has been fined €533,000 for having used activated carbon filters on its Henniez bottled mineral water, Swiss public prosecutors announced on Wednesday, June 25. The attorney general of western Switzerland's Vaud canton – where Nestlé has its headquarters, and where Henniez water is sourced – accused the global food giant's bottled water division of "misleading consumers" by having "natural mineral water" on the label between 2008 and 2022. "In doing so, the attorney general believes that the company obtained economic advantages by not complying with its legal labelling obligations," a statement said, announcing the fine. In France, Nestlé's bottled waters – which include the iconic Perrier brand – have been at the centre of a scandal since early 2024 regarding the use of micro-filtration processes. Banned for mineral waters, these processes were used by several producers, including Nestlé, as revealed by Le Monde and Radio France. Shortly afterwards, Swiss newspaper Le Temps revealed that the Nestlé Waters had also used carbon filters in the Henniez brand's factory in Switzerland. The attorney general's office said that during a 2020 inspection, it was discovered that the Henniez plant was using an activated carbon filtration process. The company was given until the end of 2022 to remove the carbon filter system. A follow-up inspection in March 2023 confirmed that the filter had indeed been decommissioned. However, the consumer office filed a complaint with the cantonal public prosecutors, accusing Nestlé Waters of concealing its use of the carbon filter. In 2024, Nestlé water brands generated sales of €3.4 billion.
The Sun
19-06-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
‘Golden Dome' is pure fantasy
MUTZIG, FRANCE: First stop on my annual visit to France's mighty Maginot Line forts is this lovely Alsatian town. Mutzig was built by the Germans 1893-1916 to defend against enemy approaches to the important city of Strasbourg. It was – and remains – the largest modern fortress in Europe. The vast fortress, which covers over 800 acres, was never attacked during World War I by the Germans or French. But as Europe's first important fortress made of concrete and fully electrified, it was eagerly studied by French engineers and served as a template for the Maginot Line forts two decades later. Both world wars showed the vulnerability of fixed fortifications. An enemy will always find a way round them or discover a fatal weakness. In regard to the 322km-long Maginot Line, the forts did not fail. They held out to the bitter end. The reason for France's stunning defeat in 1940 was the failure of its field army and its blockheaded generals. Interestingly, a French parliamentary deputy with the effervescent name of Perrier precisely predicted where the Germans would break through the Ardennes Forest in 1940. Though vulnerable, the fixed defences of the Maginot Line were hugely popular in France and wildly overestimated because they involved huge construction projects for many of the villages and factories along France's eastern border with Germany. Just as New Deal make-work projects boosted the United States during the Great Depression. We see a similar mania in the response to President Donald Trump's plan to create a national 'Golden Dome' defensive shield to protect the nation from assorted nuclear threats. In many ways, it's a re-run of President Ronald Reagan's Star Wars missile shield, which never got off the ground but was extremely popular among the public. Frederick the Great of Prussia noted, 'he who defends everything, defends nothing,' As true today as it was in the 18th century. A national missile defence system to cover the entire nation would be impossibly expensive for a nation already deeply mired in debt. The always powerful military-industrial complex will see Trump's Golden Dome fantasy as a second Christmas though the basic technology has yet to be proven. One wonders if the proponents of this defensive system have noticed that Russia has developed ballistic missiles that can alter course, change altitudes and switch targets? Or that China has ICBMs aboard freighters in the Pacific. What about evolving electronic countermeasures that can fry enemy communications and guidance systems? It would be far more prudent for the US to pursue disarmament talks and effective inspection regimes with its rivals than pie in the sky defensive systems that will certainly enrich military companies but fail to protect North America. What's more, having even a partial anti-missile system will likely make the US more aggressive and prone to wars. Better to spend the trillions on curing cancer or blindness than on space wizardry. Alas, we have a view of what awaits us. Lately, Trump banned people from 12 mostly Muslims nations and imposed restrictions on seven nations. Good work Mr President. You and your New York City construction buddies have now made enemies of a quarter of the world's population.
