Using Human Digital Twins To Explore A New Paradigm In Diabetes Care
The Health Research Council of New Zealand (HRC) is
funding exploratory research into the use of ‘human
digital twins’ and artificial intelligence aimed at
reversing Type 2 diabetes.
A Human Digital Twin (HDT) is
a digital replica of a physical human, designed to predict
and test individual responses to different interventions and
lifestyle changes.
Associate Professor Arindam Basu from
the University of Canterbury has been awarded a $150,000
Explorer Grant for the development and validation of a model
that he says could transform the management of Type 2
Diabetes Mellitus. This work is among 20 potentially
transformative research studies, across a range of
disciplines, announced today by the HRC.
Dr Basu says
fresh thinking is needed to address diabetes, which now
affects 270,000 New Zealanders and continues to rise despite
robust public health efforts. He believes a transformative
approach to Type 2 Diabetes involves moving from a
‘reactive mode’ to a proactive mode of care.
“There
is now evidence that this condition is reversible if
detected in its early stages, with measures such as weight
reduction, lifestyle modifications, stress reduction, and
exercise.”
He adds that better diabetes management will
not only help individuals and prevent complications, but
also bring major cost savings for healthcare in Aotearoa New
Zealand.
With his Explorer Grant, Dr Basu aims to reduce
the need for hospital treatment of diabetes by giving
patients tighter control of their condition in primary care
settings and at home.
He and his team aim to develop a
machine learning model whereby anonymised data, made up of
relevant physiological characteristics, is continually
passed between an individual and a computer-based ‘digital
twin’. This data would be transferred via sensors or
bluetooth-enabled devices such as a glucometer, smart watch,
or mobile phone. The digital twin would then be able to
monitor and assess the individual’s blood glucose levels
and instantly identify actionable steps to help keep their
diabetes at a ‘completely manageable level’.
While
this technology is already being used in areas such as heart
disease and anaesthesia, Dr Basu’s team will also test the
use of action-orientated ‘nudges’, via a virtual reality
avatar, to bring about the behavioural changes required in
patients.
“We’re talking about giving individuals
‘just in time’ advice, which is highly contextualised
and personalised,” he says. “We anticipate that
‘nudging’ in the form of a believable and convincing
HDT, will help users make more deliberate and better choices
related to Type 2 Diabetes and relevant lifestyle
factors.”
He says combining HDT with nudge technology
is not business as usual. “We are testing new approaches
and novel hypothesis with this research. We are asking how
we might train a deep supervised learning model – based on
literature and observational health data – to then use
these insights and generate messages that influence human
behaviour.”
Dr Basu believes HDT technology forms the
cornerstone of personalised medicine, and this research will
test its potential use in precision prevention. “With
continuous information and feedback from a digital twin,
decision-making will be simplified for individuals, allowing
them to make informed choices in the present
moment.”
The HRC’s chief executive, Professor Sunny
Collings, says this research embodies the intent of the
Explorer Grant funding round – a great launching pad for
innovative thinking.
“Testing different approaches and
harnessing the power of new technologies can be
game-changing for health. This research has the potential to
shift people’s behaviour, and to rethink how we manage
conditions like diabetes across primary and secondary
care.”
She adds that the HRC has this year awarded a
record number of Explorer Grants, helping build momentum and
capability for innovation in the health and science sectors.
“Increasing support for transformative, higher-risk
research helps increase the chances of major positive impact
and possible economic returns for New Zealand.”
See
below for the full list of 2024 Explorer Grant recipients.
To read lay summaries of the recipients’ research
projects, go to www.hrc.govt.nz/resources/research-repository
and filter for ‘Explorer Grants’ by year
‘2024’.
Recipients of the HRC’s 2024 Explorer Grants
Professor Nick Draper, University of
Canterbury
Collisions in Junior Rugby: Incidence and
magnitude and potential health effect
24 months,
$150,000
Dr Sheng Chiong Hong, oDocs Eye Care
Cultured
Corneal Endothelial Cells for Endothelial Failure
24
months, $150,000
Dr Merel Hoskens, University of
Waikato
Better rehabilitation: Integration of movement
analogies in Māori storytelling
24 months,
$150,000
Associate Professor Haizal Hussaini, University
of Otago
Retaining teeth for life: a smart
stimuli-response dental pulp medication
24 months,
$150,000
Dr Ying Jin, Massey University
Feasibility
study of feeding time-matched donor human milk to preterm
infants
24 months, $150,000
Dr Marina Kazantseva,
University of Otago
Exploring the potential of the
noncoding genome in lung disease diagnostics
24 months,
$150,000
Dr William Kelton, University of
Waikato
Self-signalling mRNA vaccines for sustained
antibody immunity
24 months, $150,000
Dr Kunyu Li,
University of Otago
Using super-wideband microwave
technology to improve cancer early diagnosis
24 months,
$150,000
Dr Samantha Marsh, The University of
Auckland
A hyper-local approach to addressing low
immunisation coverage
24 months, $150,000
Associate
Professor Ailsa McGregor, University of Otago
Preventing
the ups and downs of lithium in bipolar disorder
24
months, $150,000
Dr Narun Pat, University of
Otago
Using multimodal MRI, genomics and AI to tackle
ethnicity bias in neuroimaging
24 months,
$150,000
Associate Professor Mattie Timmer, Research
Trust of Victoria University of Wellington
Positively
selecting your MAIT Cells
24 months, $150,000
Dr
Chelsea Vickers, Research Trust of Victoria University of
Wellington
Development of novel prebiotics from marine
glycans
24 months, $150,000
Dr Olga Zubkova, Research
Trust of Victoria University of Wellington
Scalable
heparan sulfate mimetics as dual-mechanism antiviral
agents
24 months, $150,000
Associate Professor Arindam
Basu, University of Canterbury
Development and validation
of Human Digital Twins for reversing Type II Diabetes
24
months, $150,000
Associate Professor Sara Filoche,
University of Otago
Building room for equity:
Culture-centred design of hospital waiting rooms
24
months, $150,000
Dr Thomas Mules, Malaghan Institute of
Medical Research
Molecular testing for antibiotic
resistance in Helicobacter pylori
24 months,
$150,000
Associate Professor Vili Nosa, The University of
Auckland
Health Promotion Interventions for Pacific men
in a Barbershop
24 months, $150,000
Ms Kahurangi Dey,
Research Trust of Victoria University of
Wellington
Scoping pae ora with Māori communities and
tāne Māori after a DTP in prison
12 months,
$150,000
Ms Kaewa Savage, The Centre for
Health
Strengthening how people reconnect to the
environment for the health of the plan
24 months,
$150,000
About us:
The Health Research Council of
New Zealand is the government agency dedicated to funding
high-impact research with the goal of improving health
outcomes for all New Zealanders. We invest around $120M a
year in research across all health disciplines, with a focus
on developing excellent researchers; supporting the best
ideas and innovations; and working collaboratively to
address areas of greatest health need. We also play a key
role in ensuring New Zealand health research is ethical and
safe.