In-vitro differentiation of pancreatic beta-cells

Stem cell biology is a new field that holds promise for in-vitro mass production of pancreatic beta-cells, which are responsible for insulin synthesis, storage, and release. Lack or defect of insulin produces diabetes mellitus, a devastating disease suffered by 150 million people in the world. Transplantation of insulin-producing cells could be a cure for type 1 and some cases of type 2 diabetes, however this procedure is limited by the scarcity of material. Obtaining pancreatic beta-cells from embryonic stem cells would overcome this problem. We have derived insulin-producing cells from mouse embryonic stem cells by a 3-step in-vitro differentiation method consisting of directed differentiation, cell-lineage selection, and maturation. These insulin-producing cells normalize blood glucose when transplanted into streptozotocin-diabetic mice. Strategies to increase islet precursor cells from embryonic stem cells include the expression of relevant transcription factors (Pdx1, Ngn3, Isl-1, etc), together with the use of extracellular factors. Once a high enough proportion of islet precursors has been obtained there is a need for cell-lineage selection in order to purify the desired cell population. For this purpose, we designed a cell-trapping method based on a chimeric gene that fuses the human insulin gene regulatory region with the structural gene that confers resistance to neomycin. When incorporated into embryonic stem cells, this fusion gene will generate neomycin resistance in those cells that initiate the synthesis of insulin. Not only embryonic, but also adult stem cells are potential sources for insulin-containing cells. Duct cells from the adult pancreas are committed to differentiate into the four islet cell types; other possibilities may include nestin-positive cells from islets and adult pluripotent stem cells from other origins. Whilst the former are committed to be islet cells but have a reduced capacity to expand, the latter are more pluripotent and more expandable, but a longer pathway separates them from the insulin-producing stage. The aim of this review is to discuss the different strategies that may be followed to in-vitro differentiate pancreatic beta-cells from stem cells.