Stem Cells May Make Insulin Cells

23-OCT-2006

Stem Cells May Make Insulin Cells


SAN DIEGO, Oct 23, 2006 (UPI via COMTEX) -- U.S. scientists say human
embryonic stem cells can be converted into cells that produce all five
hormones made by the pancreas, including insulin.

Research conducted by Edward Baetge and colleagues at Novocell Inc. in San
Diego suggests the possibility of turning human embryonic stem cells into
pancreatic cells that can be used for diabetes therapy.

http://diabetes.org/diabetesnewsarti...care04EDIT.xml

Nat Biotechnol. 2006 Oct 19; [Epub ahead of print]
Production of pancreatic hormone-expressing endocrine cells from human
embryonic stem cells.D'Amour KA, Bang AG, Eliazer S, Kelly OG, Agulnick AD,
Smart NG, Moorman MA, Kroon E, Carpenter MK, Baetge EE.
Novocell Inc., 3550 General Atomics Ct., San Diego, California 92121, USA.

Of paramount importance for the development of cell therapies to treat
diabetes is the production of sufficient numbers of pancreatic endocrine
cells that function similarly to primary islets. We have developed a
differentiation process that converts human embryonic stem (hES) cells to
endocrine cells capable of synthesizing the pancreatic hormones insulin,
glucagon, somatostatin, pancreatic polypeptide and ghrelin. This process
mimics in vivo pancreatic organogenesis by directing cells through stages
resembling definitive endoderm, gut-tube endoderm, pancreatic endoderm and
endocrine precursor-en route to cells that express endocrine hormones. The
hES cell-derived insulin-expressing cells have an insulin content
approaching that of adult islets. Similar to fetal beta-cells, they release
C-peptide in response to multiple secretory stimuli, but only minimally to
glucose. Production of these hES cell-derived endocrine cells may represent
a critical step in the development of a renewable source of cells for
diabetes cell therapy.

PMID: 17053790

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