Reproducible preparation of spheroids of pancreatic hormone positive cells from human iPS cells: An in vitro study

Research Overview

Islet transplantation is a promising type 1 diabetes therapy, but treating human patients requires very large numbers of β-cells, making pluripotent stem cells attractive as a renewable source.

This study prepared cell aggregates from human iPS cells using agarose microwell plates and differentiated them into pancreatic endocrine cells by staged media changes. After 20 days, roughly 30% of cells in the aggregates were C-peptide positive, and after a further 14 days the cells gained functional capability — a reproducible route from stem cells to insulin-producing spheroids.