• New method of pancreatic islet cryoprese

    From ScienceDaily@1:317/3 to All on Wednesday, March 23, 2022 22:30:44
    New method of pancreatic islet cryopreservation marks breakthrough for diabetes cure

    Date:
    March 23, 2022
    Source:
    University of Minnesota
    Summary:
    Engineering and medical researchers have developed a new process
    for successfully storing specialized pancreatic islet cells at
    very low temperatures and rewarming them, enabling the potential
    for on-demand islet transplantation. The breakthrough discovery
    in cryopreservation is a major step forward in a cure for diabetes.



    FULL STORY ========================================================================== Engineering and medical researchers at the University of Minnesota Twin
    Cities and Mayo Clinic have developed a new process for successfully
    storing specialized pancreatic islet cells at very low temperatures
    and rewarming them, enabling the potential for on-demand islet
    transplantation. The breakthrough discovery in cryopreservation is a
    major step forward in a cure for diabetes.


    ========================================================================== According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, diabetes is
    the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, accounting for
    nearly 90,000 deaths each year. While diabetes management has improved
    greatly over the 100 years since the discovery of insulin, even the most
    modern methods remain a treatment for the condition rather than a cure.

    Pancreatic islet cell transplantation -- a process where doctors take
    groups of cells from a healthy pancreas and transfer them to a recipient,
    which then begin to make and release insulin on their own -- is one method being explored to cure diabetes. One of the main limitations of this
    approach is that transplants from a single donor are often insufficient
    to achieve insulin independence in the recipient. Frequently, two,
    three, or more donor islet infusions are required, which adds risks
    associated with repeated surgical interventions and multiple rounds of
    strong immunosuppression induction.

    One strategy for overcoming the donor supply problem is to pool islets
    from multiple donors, achieving high islet dosage with a single
    infusion. This process is limited by the inability to safely store
    islets for long periods of time. Previous research has shown storage to
    be limited to 48 to 72 hours before transplantation.

    In new research published in Nature Medicine, University of Minnesota researchers have developed a new method of islet cryopreservation
    that solves the storage problem by enabling quality-controlled,
    long-term preservation of the islet cells that can be pooled and used
    for transplant.

    The study was led by John Bischof, PhD, a mechanical engineering
    Distinguished McKnight University Professor and director of the
    University's Institute for Engineering in Medicine, and Erik Finger,
    MD, PhD, associate professor of surgery in the University of Minnesota
    Medical School, M Health Fairview. Both Bischof and Finger are a part of
    the National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center for Advanced Technologies for the Preservation of Biological Systems (ATP-Bio)
    and co-direct the Center for Organ Preservation at the University of
    Minnesota.



    ==========================================================================
    The study found:
    * By using a specialized cryomesh system, excess cryoprotective
    fluid was
    removed, which allowed rapid cooling and rewarming on the order of
    tens of thousands of degrees per second while avoiding problematic
    ice formation and minimizing toxicity.

    * This new cryopreservation method demonstrated high cell survival
    rates
    and functionality (90% for mouse islet cells and about 87% for pig
    and human islet cells), even after nine months of storage. Storage
    with this potential cryopreservation approach is theoretically
    indefinite.

    * In mice, the transplantation of these cryopreserved islet cells
    cured
    diabetes in 92% of recipients within 24 to 48 hours after
    transplant.

    * These results suggest that this new cryopreservation protocol may
    be a
    powerful means of improving the islet supply chain, allowing
    pooling of islets from multiple pancreases and thereby improving
    transplantation outcomes that can cure diabetes.

    "Our work provides the first islet cryopreservation protocol that simultaneously achieves high viability and function in a clinically
    scalable protocol," Bischof said. "This method could revolutionize
    the supply chain for islet isolation, allocation, and storage before transplant. Through pooling cryopreserved islets prior to transplant
    from multiple pancreases, the method will not only cure more patients,
    but also make better use of the precious gift of donor pancreases."
    The researchers also pointed out that this method has the ability to
    be scaled up to reach large numbers of people worldwide who suffer from
    this progressively debilitating disease.

    "This exciting development by our multidisciplinary research team brings engineering approaches to solve an important medical challenge -- the
    cure of diabetes," said Finger. "Despite decades of research, islet transplantation has remained 'just around the corner;' ever with great
    promise, but never quite within reach. Our technique for cryopreserving
    islets for transplantation could be a significant step towards finally achieving that lofty goal." In addition to Bischof and Finger, the
    research team included from the University of Minnesota co-first author postdoctoral fellows Li Zhan (mechanical engineering) and Joseph Sushil
    Rao (surgery). Also part of the study team were Nikhil Sethia (chemical engineering and materials science), Zonghu Han (mechanical engineering),
    Diane Tobolt (surgery), Michael Etheridge (mechanical engineering),
    and Cari S. Dutcher (mechanical engineering; chemical engineering and
    materials science). Mayo Clinic researchers who were part of the team
    included Michael Q. Slama and Quinn P. Peterson.

    This work was supported by grants from Regenerative Medicine Minnesota,
    the National Science Foundation, and the National Institutes of
    Health. Additional funding was provided by the University of Minnesota's Schulze Diabetes Institute, the Division of Transplantation at the
    Department of Surgery, Kuhrmeyer Chair in Mechanical Engineering,
    and the Bakken Chair in the Institute for Engineering in Medicine. The researchers also acknowledge the J.W Kieckhefer Foundation, the Stephen
    and Barbara Slaggie Family, and the Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation
    for supporting this work. The University of Minnesota's Characterization Facility was used in this research.

    Video: https://youtu.be/VoLyLgT9Tuc

    ========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Minnesota. Note:
    Content may be edited for style and length.


    ========================================================================== Journal Reference:
    1. Li Zhan, Joseph Sushil Rao, Nikhil Sethia, Michael Q. Slama,
    Zonghu Han,
    Diane Tobolt, Michael Etheridge, Quinn P. Peterson, Cari S. Dutcher,
    John C. Bischof, Erik B. Finger. Pancreatic islet cryopreservation
    by vitrification achieves high viability, function, recovery and
    clinical scalability for transplantation. Nature Medicine, 2022;
    DOI: 10.1038/ s41591-022-01718-1 ==========================================================================

    Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220323114518.htm

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