When transplanted into type 1a diabetic recipients, islet allografts are subject both to conventional allograft immunity and, presumably, to recurrent autoimmune (islet-specific) pathogenesis. Importantly, CD4 T cells play a central role both in islet allograft rejection and in autoimmune disease recurrence leading to the destruction of syngeneic islet transplants in diabetic NOD mice. However,...

Impaired revascularization of transplanted islets is a critical problem that leads to progressive islet loss. Since endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) are known to aid neovascularization, we aimed to enhance islet engraftment by cotransplanting EPCs with islets. Porcine islets, with (islet-EPC group) or without (islet-only group) human cord blood-derived EPCs, were transplanted into diabetic n...

Islet transplantation is a promising treatment for type 1 diabetes. However, islet grafts are submitted to multiple injuries, including immunosuppressive drug toxicity, hyperglycemia, hypoxia, unspecific inflammatory reactions, as well as alloand autoimmune destruction. Therapeutic approaches to these damage mechanisms require early detection of islet injury, which is currently not feasible bec...

Islet cell transplantation is categorized as a β-cell replacement therapy for diabetic patients who lack the ability to secrete insulin. Allogeneic islet cell transplantation is for the treatment of type 1 diabetes, and autologous islet cell transplantation is for the prevention of surgical diabetes after a total pancreatectomy. The issues of allogeneic islet cell transplantation include poor e...

Our goal was to determine the role of the p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75NTR) in the loss of islet sympathetic nerves that occurs during the autoimmune attack of the islet. The islets of transgenic (Tg) mice in which β-cells express a viral glycoprotein (GP) under the control of the insulin promotor (Ins2) were stained for neuropeptide Y before, during, and after virally induced autoimmune attac...

Islet transplantation is a promising treatment for type 1 diabetes. However, islet grafts are submitted to multiple injuries, including immunosuppressive drug toxicity, hyperglycemia, hypoxia, unspecific inflammatory reactions, as well as alloand autoimmune destruction. Therapeutic approaches to these damage mechanisms require early detection of islet injury, which is currently not feasible bec...

OBJECTIVE To elucidate the role of insulin gene enhancer protein ISL-1 (Islet-1) in angiogenesis and regulation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in vitro and in vivo. METHODS siRNA targeting Islet-1 was transfected to human umbilical vein endothelial cell lines (HUVECs). The expression of Islet-1 and VEGF in the cultured cells was measured using real-time PCR and immuno...

Refined methods of islet cell purification have led to unprecedented success of islet cell allotransplantation via portal vein infusion in diabetic patients, resulting in marked reduction of exogenous insulin requirements and recently even insulin independence. The authors report the histologic findings of islet cell allografts in the liver of four patients who had undergone combined kidney-isl...

The full potential of cadaveric islet transplantation will only be realized by avoiding both pretransplant insults programming islets for subsequent death and posttransplant triggers for apoptosis and necrosis. The immediate blood mediated inflammatory response causes significant islet loss in the immediate posttransplant period. However, if we focus on this alone we will miss many opportunitie...