Islets of Langerhans from stem cells

Beta cells are grown from stem cells

Georgy Golovanov, Hi-tech+

Insulin is an important hormone produced by beta cells of the pancreas. Their destruction leads to type I diabetes, when patients are forced to inject insulin several times a day. Scientists have managed to optimize the functionality of pancreatic cells created from stem cells — they have become almost indistinguishable from ordinary pancreatic islets both in structure and in action.

Medicine has learned to restore insulin production in diabetic patients by transplanting beta cells isolated from the pancreas of donors with brain death. However, this therapy cannot be widely available, since at least two donors are required to treat one diabetic.

For a long time, scientists have been trying to create functional beta cells from stem cells - this would significantly simplify the treatment of type I diabetes. But such beta cells remained immature and it was difficult to regulate their insulin production. Specialists from The University of Helsinki has demonstrated for the first time the possibility of forming stem cells that mimic the structure and functionality of ordinary pancreatic cells, according to a press release from the university.

An islet of the pancreas derived from stem cells. Insulin-producing cells are shown in red, and glucagon-producing cells are shown in green.

The cells they created regulated insulin secretion as natural and reacted to changes in glucose levels even better than pancreatic islets isolated from donor organs. The scientists conducted tests on cell cultures and on mouse models. In the latter case, the grown beta cells transplanted to animals were able to effectively control glucose metabolism.

In addition to insulin production, the researchers studied the work of systems regulating the secretion of this hormone, including metabolism and ion channels, and also linked the discoveries made with gene expression occurring during the development of these systems.

Article by Balboa et al. Functional, metabolic and transcriptional maturation of human pancreatic islets derived from stem cells is published in the journal Nature Biotechnology – VM.

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