Differentiation of Human Deceased Donor, Adipose-Derived, Mesenchymal Stem Cells into Functional Beta Cells

There is an emerging need for the rapid generation of functional beta cells that can be used in cell replacement therapy for the treatment of type 1 diabetes (T1D). Differentiation of stem cells into insulin-producing cells provides a promising strategy to restore pancreatic endocrine function. Stem cells can be isolated from various human tissues including adipose tissue (AT). Our study outlines a novel, non-enzymatic process to harvest mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) from research-consented, deceased donor AT. Following their expansion, MSC were characterised morphologically and phenotypically by flow cytometry to establish their use for downstream differentiation studies. MSC were induced to differentiate into insulin-producing beta cells using a step-wise differentiation medium. The differentiation was evaluated by analysing the morphology, dithizone staining, immunocytochemistry, and expression of pancreatic beta cell marker genes. We stimulated the beta cells with different concentrations of glucose and observed a dose-dependent increase in gene expression. In addition, an increase in insulin and c-Peptide secretion as a function of glucose challenge confirmed the functionality of the differentiated beta cells. The differentiation of adipose-derived MSC into beta cells has been well established. However, our data demonstrates, for the first time, that the ready availability and properties of MSC isolated from deceased donor adipose tissue render them well-suited as a source for increased production of functional beta cells. Consequently, these cells can be a promising therapeutic approach for cell replacement therapy to treat patients with T1D.