title: Morphology, yield and functional integrity of islet-like cell clusters in tissue culture of human fetal pancreata obtained after different means of abortion.
abstract: Morphology, yield and function were studied in cultured islet-like cell clusters (ICC) from 140 human fetal pancreata obtained after abortions of different types performed at 11-23 weeks of gestation (12 by hysterotomy, 75 by mechanical dilation and extraction, and 53 induced with prostaglandin). After collagenase digestion and culture in medium supplemented with 10% human serum, up to 2000 free-floating ICC were formed from a single pancreas. Randomly scattered insulin- and glucagon-immunoreactive cells were found in the medullary part of the ICC. More than 100 ICC developed in 100% of the hysterotomies and 87% of the mechanical abortions, but in only 53% of the prostaglandin-induced abortions. Insulin and glucagon levels in the culture medium decreased rapidly during the first 7 days of culture, but then remained stable for at least 31 days. The hysterotomy-derived ICC responded to 10 mmol/l theophylline plus 20 mmol/l glucose by a 12.2 +/- 3.1 (SEM, N = 7) fold increase in insulin release, as compared with a 5.4 +/- 0.9 fold response of the prostaglandin ICC (N = 16; P less than 0.02). Despite the low proportion of B-cells, (pro)insulin biosynthesis accounted for 10% of the total protein biosynthesis in low (2 mmol/l) glucose. In conclusion, the yield and viability of the ICC were clearly better, if prostaglandin had not been used for the induction of the abortion.
authors.affiliation: Children's Hospital, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Otonkoski
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Knip
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Panula
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Andersson
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Goldman
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Simell
mesh_terms: D000028:Abortion, Induced / Q000379:methods; D046508:Culture Techniques; D004247:DNA / Q000032:analysis; D005934:Glucagon / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007328:Insulin / Q000378:metabolism; D007515:Islets of Langerhans / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology* / Q000378:metabolism; D011384:Proinsulin / Q000096:biosynthesis; D013048:Specimen Handling
chemical_list: D007328:Insulin; D004247:DNA; D005934:Glucagon; D011384:Proinsulin