[In vitro phenomenon of beta cell migration from fetal calf pseudoislets]

Pseudoislets--pancreatic microfragments containing a lot of beta-cells and capable of insulin secretion in vitro-were obtained from 12 fetal calf pancreata by the use of collagenase. Morphological and functional changes of the pseudoislets were studied during culture. We found a rapid migration of beta-cells out of the pseudoislets to the bottom of plastic tissue culture plates. This process was accompanied by a significant decrease of insulin-secreting capacity of the floating microfragments. This should be taken into consideration in cases when pseudoislets are prepared for transplantation in order to avoid beta-cell loss.