Postnatal Pancreas of Mice Contains Tripotent Progenitors Capable of Giving Rise to Duct, Acinar, and Endocrine Cells In Vitro.

ABSTRACT: Postnatal pancreas is a potential source for progenitor cells to generate endocrine β-cells for treating type 1 diabetes. However, it remains unclear whether young (1-week-old) pancreas harbors multipotent progenitors capable of differentiating into duct, acinar, and endocrine cells. Laminin is an extracellular matrix (ECM) protein important for β-cells' survival and function. We established an artificial extracellular matrix (aECM) protein that contains the functional IKVAV (Ile-Lys-Val-Ala-Val) sequence derived from laminin (designated aECM-lam). Whether IKVAV is necessary for endocrine differentiation in vitro is unknown. To answer these questions, we cultured single cells from 1-week-old pancreas in semi-solid media supplemented with aECM-lam, aECM-scr (which contains a scrambled seque

SUBMITTER: Ghazalli N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4545527 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature