Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Pig as the Donor of Pancreatic Islets for Men

  • Published:
Veterinary Research Communications Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Trucco, M., Casu, A. and Bottino, R., 2007. The pig as the donor of pancreatic islets for men. Veterinary Research Communications, 31(Suppl. 1), 27–33

Abstract

The promising results obtained using the “Edmonton protocol” for human islet transplantation has resulted in increased interest and growth of various clinical and basic science programs worldwide. Despite these encouraging results two major drawbacks remain: first, the immunosuppressive regimen necessary to prevent the rejection of this allotransplant dramatically affects the lifestyle of the treated patients precluding its implementation in younger diabetic individuals. Second, there continues to be an inadequate amount of islet tissue available to fulfill the needs of an increasing population of diabetic patients possibly interested in receiving this type of treatment. Besides the limited number of cadaveric organ donors, the current procedure used to isolate islets from their pancreata activates metabolic processes that promote the loss of β cells in the islets. Thus, it becomes necessary to use more than one donor for a single recipient. To fulfill the continuously growing need for more transplantable islets, an immediately available, unlimited source of islets may be found in animals, which are able to produce a type of insulin that is very similar to the human one, and carry islets in quantities that may satisfy the metabolic requirements of diabetic patients: the pigs.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bottino R., Balamurugan A.N., Giannoukakis N. and Trucco M., 2002a. Islet/pancreas transplantation: challenges for pediatrics. Pediatric Diabetes, 3, 210–223

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bottino R., Balamurugan A.N., Bertera S., Pietropaolo M., Trucco M. and Piganelli J.D., 2002b. Preservation of human islet cell functional mass by anti-oxidative action of a novel SOD-mimic compound. Diabetes, 51, 2561–2567

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cornelius J.G., Tchernev V., Kao K.J. and Peck A.B., 1997. In vitro-generation of islets in long-term cultures of pluripotent stem cells from adult mouse pancreas. Hormones and Metabolic Research, 29, 271–277

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dai Y., Vaught T.D., Boone J., Boone J., Chen S.H., Phelps C.J., Ball S., Monahan J.A., Jobst P.M., McCreath K.J., Lamborn A.E., Cowell-Lucero J.L., Wells K.D., Colman A., Palejaeva I.A. and Ayares D.L., 2002. Targeted disruption of the alpha1,3 galactosyl transferase gene in cloned pigs. Nature Biotechnology, 20, 251–255

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Efrat S., 1998. Cell-based therapy for insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. European Journal of Endocrinology, 138, 129–133

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Galili V., 1993. Evolution and pathophysiology of the human natural anti-alpha galactosyltransferase IgG (anti-Gal) antibody. Springer Seminars in Immunopathology, 15, 155–171

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Giannoukakis N. and Trucco M., 2003. Gene therapy technology applied to disorders of glucose metabolism: promise, achievements and prospects. BioTechniques, 35, 122–145

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Giannoukakis N., Rudert W.A., Robbins P.D. and Trucco M., 1999. Targeting autoimmune diabetes with gene therapy. Diabetes, 48, 2107–2121

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Groth C.G., Korsgren O., Tibell A., Tollemar J., Moller E., Bolinder J., Ostman J., Reinholt F.P., Hellerstrom C. and Andersson A., 1994. Transplantation of porcine fetal pancreas to diabetic patients. The Lancet, 344, 1402–1404

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kenyon N.S., Chatzipetrou M., Masetti M., Ranuncoli A., Oliveira M., Wagner J.L., Kirk A.D., Harlan D.M., Burkly L.C. and Ricordi C., 1999. Long-term survival and function of intrahepatic islet allografts in rhesus monkeys treated with humanized anti-CD154. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 96, 8132–8137

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Koike C., Friday R.P., Nakashima I., Luppi P., Fung J.J., Rao A.S., Starzl T.E. and Trucco M., 2000. Isolation of the regulatory regions and genomic organization of the porcine alpha 1,3-galactosyltransferase gene. Transplantation, 70, 1275–1283

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Koike C., Fung J.J., Geller D.A., Kannagi R., Libert T., Luppi P., Nakashima I., Profozich J., Rudert W., Sharma S.B., Starzl T.E. and Trucco M., 2002. Molecular basis of evolutionary loss of the alpha 1,3- galactosyltransferase gene in higher primates. The Journal of Biological Chemistry, 277, 10114–10120

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Korsgren O., Sandler S., Landstrom A.S., Jansson L. and Andersson A., 1988. Large-scale production of fetal porcine pancreatic isletlike cell clusters. Transplantation, 45, 509–514

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lumelsky N., Blondel O., Laeng P., Velasco I., Ravin R. and McKay R., 2001. Differentiation of embryonic stem cells to insulin-secreting structures similar to pancreatic islets. Science, 292, 1389–1394

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Okamoto H. and Takasawa S., 2002. Recent advances in the Okamoto model: the CD38-cyclic ADP-ribose signal system and the regenerating gene protein (Reg)-Reg receptor system in beta-cells. Diabetes, 51, S462–S473

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Paraskevas S., Maysinger D., Wang R., Duguid T.P. and Rosenberg L., 2000. Cell loss in isolated human islets occurs by apoptosis. Pancreas, 20, 270–276

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Phelps C.J., Koike C., Vaught T.D., Boone J., Wells K.D., Chen S.H., Ball S., Specht S.M., Polejaeva I.A., Monahan J.A., Jobst P.M., Sharma S.M., Lamborn A.E., Moore M., Demetris A.J., Rudert W., Bottino R., Bertera S., Trucco M., Starzl T.E., Dai Y. and Ayares D.L., 2003: Production of α1,3-galactosyltransferase deficient pigs by cloning. Science, 299, 411–414

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Polejaeva I., Chen S.H., Vaught T., Page R., Mullins J., Ball S., Dai Y., Boone J., Walker S., Ayares D., Colman A. and Campbell K.H.S., 2000. Cloned pigs produced by nuclear transfer from adult somatic cells. Nature, 407, 86–90

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ricordi C., 2003. Islet transplantation: a brave new world. Diabetes, 52, 1595–1603

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rood P.P.M., Bottino R., Balamurugan A.N., Smetanka C.A., Ayares D., Murase N., Cooper D.K.C. and Trucco M., 2007. Reduction of early graft loss after intraportal porcine islet transplantation in monkeys. Transplantation, 83, 202–209

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Shapiro A.M., Lakey J.R., Ryan E.A., Korbutt G.S., Toth E., Warnock G.L., Kneteman N.M. and Rajotte R., 2000. Islet transplantation in seven patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus using a glucocorticoid-free immunosuppressive regimen. The New England Journal of Medicine, 343, 230–238

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Shapiro A.M., Ricordi C., Hering B.J., Auchincloss H., Lindblad R., Robertson R.P., Secchi A., Brendel M.D., Berney T., Brennan D.C., Cagliero E., Alejandro R., Ryan E.A., DiMercurio B., Morel P., Polonsky K.S., Reems J., Bretzel R.G., Bertuzzi F., Froud T., Kandaswarmy R., Sutherland D.E.R., Eisenbarth G., Segal M., Preiksaitis J., Korbutt G.S., Barton F.B., Viviano L., Seyfert-Margolis V., Bluestone J. and Lakey J.R.T., 2006. Interntaional trial of the Edmonton protocol for islet transplantation. The New England Journal of Medicine, 355, 1318–1330

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tearle R.K., Tange M.J., Zannettino Z.L., Katerelos M., Shinkel T.A., Van Denderen B., Lonie A.J., Lyons I., Nottle M.B., Cox T., Becker C., Peura A.M., Wigley P.L., Crawford R.J., Robins A.J., Pearse M.J. and D’Apice A., 1996. The α1,3-galactosyltransferase knockout mouse. Transplantation, 61, 13–19

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Istituto Mediterraneo per I Trapianti e Terapie ad Alta Specializzazione, Palermo, Italy

    M. Trucco, A. Casu & R. Bottino

  2. Division of immunogenetics, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    M. Trucco, A. Casu & R. Bottino

Authors
  1. M. Trucco
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. A. Casu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. R. Bottino
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to M. Trucco.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Trucco, M., Casu, A. & Bottino, R. The Pig as the Donor of Pancreatic Islets for Men. Vet Res Commun 31 (Suppl 1), 27–33 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11259-007-0006-7

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11259-007-0006-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation