Reformed islets: a long-term primary cell platform for exploring mouse and human islet biology.

ABSTRACT: Pancreatic islets are 3D micro-organs that maintain β-cell functionality through cell-cell and cell-matrix communication. While primary islets, the gold standard for in vitro models, have a short culture life of approximately 1-2 weeks, we developed a novel protocol that employs reformed islets following dispersion coupled with a fine-tuned culture environment. Reformed islets exhibit physiological characteristics similar to primary islets, enabling high-resolution imaging and repeated functional assessment. Unlike other in vitro platforms, reformed islets retain an immune population, allowing the study of interactions between β cells and resident and infiltrating immune cells. Analyses showed that reformed islets have a similar composition and cytoarchitecture to primary islets, including

SUBMITTER: Haq N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11585622 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature