PDX1-engineered embryonic stem cell-derived insulin producing cells regulate hyperglycemia in diabetic mice

Hepatic insulin synthesis increases in rat models of diabetes mellitus type 1 and 2 differently

Insulin-positive (+) cells (IPCs), detected in multiple organs, are of great interest as a probable alternative to ameliorate pancreatic beta-cells dysfunction and insulin deficiency in diabetes. Liver is a potential source of IPCs due to it common embryological origin with pancreas. We previously demonstrated the presence of IPCs in the liver of healthy and diabetic rats, but detailed description and analysis of the factors, which potentially can induced ectopic hepatic expression of insulin in type 1 (T1D) and type 2 diabetes (T2D), were not performed. In present study we evaluate mass of hepatic IPCs in the rat models of T1D and T2D and discuss factors, which may stimulate it generation: glycaemia, organ injury, involving of hepatic stem/progenitor cell compartment, expression of transcription factors and inflammation. Quantity of IPCs in the liver was up by 1.7-fold in rats with T1D and 10-fold in T2D compared to non-diabetic (ND) rats. We concluded that ectopic hepatic expression of insulin gene is activated by combined action of a number of factors, with inflammation playing a decision role.

Using single-cell multi-omics screening of human fetal pancreas to identify novel players in human beta cell development

Islet transplantation from organ donors can considerably improve glucose homeostasis and well-being in individuals with type 1 diabetes, where the beta cells are destroyed by the autoimmune attack, but there are insufficient donor islets to make this a widespread therapy. Strategies are therefore being developed to generate unlimited amounts of insulin-producing beta cells from pluripotent stem cells, with the aim that they will be transplanted to treat diabetes. Whilst much progress has been made in recent years in the directed differentiation of pluripotent stem cells to beta-like cells, essential gaps still exist in generating stem cell-derived beta cells that are fully functional in vitro. This short review provides details of recent multi-'omics' studies of the human fetal pancreas, which are revealing granular information on the various cell types in the developing pancreas. It is anticipated that this fine mapping of the pancreatic cells at single-cell resolution will provide additional insights that can be utilised to reproducibly produce human beta cells in vitro that have the functional characteristics of beta cells within native human islets.

Electrospun Nanofibers for Diabetes: Tissue Engineering and Cell-Based Therapies

Diabetes mellitus is an autoimmune disease which causes loss of insulin secretion producing hyperglycemia by promoting progressive destruction of pancreatic β cells. An ideal therapeutic approach to manage diabetes mellitus is pancreatic β cells replacement. The aim of this review article was to evaluate the role of nanofibrous scaffolds and stem cells in the treatment of diabetes mellitus. Various studies have pointed out that application of electrospun biomaterials has considerably attracted researchers in the field of tissue engineering. The principles of cell therapy for diabetes have been reviewed in the first part of this article, while the usability of tissue engineering as a new therapeutic approach is discussed in the second part.

Directed Differentiation of Pluripotent Stem Cells by Transcription Factors

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have been used as promising tools for regenerative medicine, disease modeling, and drug screening. Traditional and common strategies for pluripotent stem cell (PSC) differentiation toward disease-relevant cell types depend on sequential treatment of signaling molecules identified based on knowledge of developmental biology. However, these strategies suffer from low purity, inefficiency, and time-consuming culture conditions. A growing body of recent research has shown efficient cell fate reprogramming by forced expression of single or multiple transcription factors. Here, we review transcription factor-directed differentiation methods of PSCs toward neural, muscle, liver, and pancreatic endocrine cells. Potential applications and limitations are also discussed in order to establish future directions of this technique for therapeutic purposes.

Are Tanycytes the Missing Link Between Type 2 Diabetes and Alzheimer's Disease?

Tanycytes are highly specialized bipolar ependymal cells that line the ventrolateral wall and the floor of the third ventricle in the brain and form a blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier at the level of the median eminence. They play a pivotal role in regulating metabolic networks that control body weight and energy homeostasis. Due to the glucosensing function of tanycytes, they could be considered as a critical player in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes. Genetic fate mapping studies have established the role of tanycytes for the newly detected adult hypothalamic neurogenesis with important implications for metabolism as well as pathophysiology of various neurodegenerative diseases. We believe that a comprehensive understanding of the physiological mechanisms underlying their neuroplasticity, glucosensing, and cross talk with endothelial cells will enable us to achieve metabolic homeostasis in type 2 diabetes patients and possibly delay the progression of Alzheimer's disease and hopefully improve cognitive function.

The combined effect of Pdx1 overexpression and Shh manipulation on the function of insulin-producing cells derived from adipose-tissue stem cells

Pancreatic and duodenal homeobox 1 (Pdx1) and Sonic hedgehog (Shh) are the key regulators of beta-cell function. In vitro experiments have shown that there is significant cooperation between Pdx1 and Shh with regard to the production and maintenance of insulin-producing cells (IPCs). In this study, the combined effect of Pdx1 overexpression and Shh manipulation on the function of adipose tissue-derived IPCs was determined. A eukaryotic expression vector (Pdx1- pCDNA3.1(+)) was constructed and transfected into a Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell line. Adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADMSCs) obtained from rats were assigned to two groups [control (C) and manipulated (M)] and differentiated into IPCs. Manipulated cells were treated with a mixture of FGF-β and cyclopamine and recombinant Shh protein at days 3 and 11, respectively, and transfected with Pdx1- pCDNA3.1(+) at day 10. The expression of multiple genes related to function of beta cells was analyzed using real-time PCR. The functionality of IPCs in vitro was analyzed through dithizone (DTZ) staining and ELISA. IPCs were injected into the tail vein of diabetic rats, and blood glucose and insulin concentrations were measured. CHO cells transfected with Pdx1- pCDNA3.1(+) showed a significantly higher expression of Pdx1 compared with nontransfected cells. Manipulated IPCs exhibited a significantly higher expression of MafA, Nkx2.2, Nkx6.1, Ngn3, insulin, and Isl1 and a higher insulin secretion in response to glucose challenge in relation to control cells. Rats that received manipulated IPCs exhibited a higher ability to normalize blood glucose and insulin secretion when compared to controls. Our protocol might be used for more efficient cell therapy of patients with diabetes in the future.

Peripheral blood monocytes can differentiate into efficient insulin-producing cells in vitro

BACKGROUND

Recent studies provide evidence that peripheral blood monocytes have the ability to differentiate into mesenchymal-like cells. The ability of cultured monocytes to differentiate and produce insulin in vitro is analysed in the present study.

METHODS

Peripheral blood monocytes were isolated from healthy donors and cultivated for fourteen days. Growth factors and liraglutide were used to induce pancreatic differentiation in most of the cultures. The growth factors were: monocyte colony-stimulating factor, interleukin-3, hepatocyte growth factor and epidermal growth factor. The rest of the cultures were cultivated only with nutrient medium and human serum. Insulin levels were measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Cellular morphology was observed using optical and electron microscopy. Cell membrane receptors were detected by flow cytometry.

RESULTS

Monocytes were able to synthesize and excrete high levels of insulin after seven days in culture. A further increase in the excretion of insulin was observed after fourteen days. Cells were also able to differentiate and synthesize insulin, even if no growth factors were added to the culture medium. Some of the cultures were able to excrete insulin in a glucose-dependent manner. Differentiated monocytes were connected to neighbouring cells with axons and resembled the morphology of mesenchymal, dendritic and myeloid-progenitor cells. Cells retained their mature receptors and simultaneously developed immature receptors on their membrane.

CONCLUSIONS

Monocytes can acquire morphological properties of multipotent cells when they are cultivated under specific conditions in vitro. Differentiated monocytes are able to synthesize and excrete insulin. Hippokratia 2015; 19 (4): 344-351.

Human iPS cell-derived insulin producing cells form vascularized organoids under the kidney capsules of diabetic mice

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is caused by autoimmune disease that leads to the destruction of pancreatic β-cells. Transplantation of cadaveric pancreatic organs or pancreatic islets can restore normal physiology. However, there is a chronic shortage of cadaveric organs, limiting the treatment of the majority of patients on the pancreas transplantation waiting list. Here, we hypothesized that human iPS cells can be directly differentiated into insulin producing cells (IPCs) capable of secreting insulin. Using a series of pancreatic growth factors, we successfully generated iPS cells derived IPCs. Furthermore, to investigate the capability of these cells to secrete insulin in vivo, the differentiated cells were transplanted under the kidney capsules of diabetic immunodeficient mice. Serum glucose levels gradually declined to either normal or near normal levels over 150 days, suggesting that the IPCs were secreting insulin. In addition, using MRI, a 3D organoid appeared as a white patch on the transplanted kidneys but not on the control kidneys. These organoids showed neo-vascularization and stained positive for insulin and glucagon. All together, these data show that a pancreatic organ can be created in vivo providing evidence that iPS cells might be a novel option for the treatment of T1D.

Insulin-producing cells from embryonic stem cells rescues hyperglycemia via intra-spleen migration

Implantation of embryonic stem cells (ESC)-derived insulin-producing cells has been extensively investigated for treatment of diabetes in animal models. However, the in vivo behavior and migration of transplanted cells in diabetic models remains unclear. Here we investigated the location and migration of insulin-producing cells labeled with superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) using a dynamic MRI tracking method. SPIO labeled cells showed hypointense signal under the kidney subcapsules of diabetic mice on MRI, and faded gradually over the visiting time. However, new hypointense signal appeared in the spleen 1 week after transplantation, and became obvious with the time prolongation. Further histological examination proved the immigrated cells were insulin and C-peptide positive cells which were evenly distributed throughout the spleen. These intra-spleen insulin-producing cells maintained their protective effects against hyperglycemia in vivo, and these effects were reversed upon spleen removal. Transplantation of insulin-producing cells through spleen acquired an earlier blood glucose control as compared with that through kidney subcapsules. In summary, our data demonstrate that insulin-producing cells transplanted through kidney subcapsules were not located in situ but migrated into spleen, and rescues hyperglycemia in diabetic models. MRI may provide a novel tracking method for preclinical cell transplantation therapy of diabetes continuously and non-invasively.

Under a nonadherent state, bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells can be efficiently induced into functional islet-like cell clusters to normalize hyperglycemia in mice: a control study

Introduction

Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) possess low immunogenicity and immunosuppression as an allograft, can differentiate into insulin-producing cells (IPCs) by in vitro induction, and may be a valuable cell source to regenerate pancreatic islets. However, the very low differentiation efficiency of BMSCs towards IPCs under adherent induction has thus far hindered the clinical exploitation of these cells. The aim of this study is to explore a new way to efficiently induce BMSCs into IPCs and lay the groundwork for their clinical exploitation.

Methods

In comparison with adherent induction, BMSCs of human first-trimester abortus (hfBMSCs) under a nonadherent state were induced towards IPCs in noncoated plastic dishes using a three-stage induction procedure developed by the authors. Induction effects were evaluated by statistics of the cell clustering rate of induced cells, and ultrastructural observation, dithizone staining, quantitative polymerase chain reaction and immunofluorescence assay, insulin and c-peptide release under glucose stimulus of cell clusters, as well as transplantation test of the cell clusters in diabetic model mice.

Results

With (6.175 ± 0.263) × 10⁵ cells in 508.5 ± 24.5 cell clusters, (3.303 ± 0.331) × 10⁵ single cells and (9.478 ± 0.208) × 10⁵ total cell count on average, 65.08 ± 2.98% hfBMSCs differentiated into pancreatic islet-like cell clusters after nonadherent induction. With (3.993 ± 0.344) × 10⁵ cells in 332.3 ± 41.6 cell clusters, (5.437 ± 0.434) × 10⁵ single cells and (9.430 ± 0.340) × 10⁵ total cell count on average, 42.37 ± 3.70% hfBMSCs differentiated into pancreatic islet-like cell clusters after adherent induction (P < 0.01, n = 10). The former is significantly higher than the latter. Calculated according to the cell clustering rate and IPC percentage in the cell clusters, 29.80 ± 3.95% hfBMSCs differentiated into IPCs after nonadherent induction and 18.40 ± 2.08% hfBMSCs differentiated into IPCs after adherent induction (P < 0.01, n = 10), the former significantly higher than the latter. The cell clusters expressed a broad gene profile related to pancreatic islet cells, released insulin and c-peptide in a glucose concentration-dependent manner, and normalized hyperglycemia of streptozocin-induced mice for at least 80 days following xenograft. Blood glucose of grafted mice rose again after their graft removed. A series of examination of the grafts showed that transplanted cells produced human insulin in recipients.

Conclusions

Our studies demonstrate that nonadherent induction can greatly promote BMSCs to form pancreatic islet-like cell clusters, thereby improving the differentiation efficiency of BMSCs towards IPCs.

Stem cell transplantation improves aging-related diseases

Aging is a complex process of damage accumulation, and has been viewed as experimentally and medically intractable. The number of patients with age-associated diseases such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), osteoporosis, Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease, atherosclerosis, and cancer has increased recently. Aging-related diseases are related to a deficiency of the immune system, which results from an aged thymus and bone marrow cells. Intra bone marrow-bone marrow transplantation (IBM-BMT) is a useful method to treat intractable diseases. This review summarizes findings that IBM-BMT can improve and treat aging-related diseases, including T2DM, osteoporosis and AD, in animal models.