New Method Yields Insulin-Producing Pancreatic Cell Clusters

April 3, 2012 - PRLog -- Contact: Vicki Cohn, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., (914) 740-2100, ext. 2156, vcohn@liebertpub.com
   
New Method Yields Insulin-Producing Pancreatic Cell Clusters

New Rochelle, NY—Three-dimensional clusters of pancreatic beta-cells that live much longer and secrete more insulin than single cells grown in the laboratory are valuable new tools for studying pancreatic diseases such as diabetes and for testing novel therapies. This cutting-edge advance is described in an article in Tissue Engineering, Part C, Methods, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. (http://www.liebertpub.com). The article is available free online at the Tissue Engineering website. (http://www.liebertpub.com/ten)
   
“Finding a solution for the culturing and final transplantation of pancreatic cells will be an enormous breakthrough for the treatment of diabetes," says John Jansen, DDS, PhD, Methods Co-Editor-in-Chief and Professor and Chairman, Department of Periodontology and Biomaterials, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center, The Netherlands.

Growing pancreatic cells in the laboratory is challenging, in part because to survive and function normally they require cell-cell contact. Abigail Bernard, Chien-Chi Lin, PhD, and Kristi Anseth, PhD, University of Colorado at Boulder, and Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis, developed an innovative method that uses photolithography to create microwell cell culture environments that support the formation of 3-D pancreatic beta-cell clusters and control the size of the cell aggregates. They describe the ability to remove these cell clusters from the microwells and encapsulate them in hydrogels for subsequent testing or implantation. They present their work in the article “A Microwell Cell Culture Platform for the Aggregation of Pancreatic Beta-Cells.” (http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/ten.tec.201...)


About the Journal
Tissue Engineering is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published monthly in print and online in three parts: Part A--the flagship journal; Part B—Reviews; and Part C—Methods. Led by Co-Editors-In-Chief Antonios Mikos, PhD, Louis Calder Professor at Rice University, Houston, TX, and Peter C. Johnson, MD, Vice President, Research and Development, Avery Dennison Medical Solutions of Chicago, IL and President and CEO, Scintellix, LLC, Raleigh, NC, the Journal brings together scientific and medical experts in the fields of biomedical engineering, material science, molecular and cellular biology, and genetic engineering. Tissue Engineering is the official journal of the Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Medicine International Society (TERMIS). Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed online at the Tissue Engineering website.(http://www.liebertpub.com/ten)

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About the Company
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Stem Cells and Development, Human Gene Therapy and HGT Methods, and Biopreservation and Biobanking. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 70 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available at Mary Ann Liebert Inc. (http://www.liebertpub.com)