There’s a new clinical trial happening at the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System that’s testing something pretty wild — insulin-producing cells from pigs. Yep. Pig islet cells. These are the same kinds of cells in your pancreas that make insulin. In people with type 1 diabetes, those cells are destroyed by the immune system. The idea here is simple: replace them with healthy ones from pigs so they can start making insulin again.

The big reason researchers are using pig cells is supply. There just aren’t enough human donor islet cells to help everyone with type 1. Pigs, on the other hand, are a more scalable source — and their insulin-producing cells work a lot like ours. In this study, the pig islets are placed inside a special protective device before being implanted. That device is designed to protect the cells from your immune system, ideally without needing lifelong anti-rejection drugs.

Right now, the trial is focused on adults with type 1 who struggle with severe lows and unstable blood sugars. It’s early-stage, which means researchers are mostly looking at safety and figuring out the right dose. This isn’t a cure (yet), but it’s another serious attempt at solving two huge problems in diabetes research: not enough cells, and an immune system that won’t behave. And honestly? The fact that pig cells are even being tested in humans right now is a pretty big deal.